Refugees
We went as far as the car would take us.
To the shores of a troubled sea.
The sky was dark and the winds were strong.
But the boat would help us flee.
The car had done all it could do.
Crossing mountains and desert sands.
It kept us away from dangerous men.
Who moved in marauding bands.
It served us well. It was our home.
Where we slept and ate out meals.
Along the way, we sold off things,
And made some very poor deals.
But they got us the money. For a ride on the boat.
All leaky and smelling of fish.
To cross the water and get away,
Was all that we could wish.
The wind grew fierce. The waves were high,
As we sat in the back of the boat.
Watching the car get small in the distance.
And hoping we’d stay afloat.
The captain and crew unsure of themselves,
Said our chances were very slim.
Depressing news for those of us
Who did not know how to swim!
Then out of the dark, there came a light.
A beam like we’d never seen.
Was it Allah come to save us now?
Or just a hopeful dream?
The beam came from a larger boat.
They threw life jackets in our faces.
They pulled us off our sinking boat,
These men of other races.
We went ashore at a place with tents.
Where people like us were kept.
That is where we spent the night.
And in one of those tents, we slept.
The morning came all bright and clear.
The sea behind us was smooth.
They said that they were sending us back,
And all we gained we’d lose.
The guards were sloppy. A gate unlocked.
We decided to make a dash.
We ran across an open field,
And hid in a truck full of trash.
The truck and us we smelled like hell.
But that would help us get by.
It took us to a city dump
Where one of us would die.
But in that dump, we found some things,
For which there was demand.
We left that dump and our friend behind,
Like the car on the desert sand.
Life got good as we made our way,
Up capitalism’s endless ladder.
Which makes what happened next to us,
Even more the sadder.
Guys with skinheads swung batons,
Exerting racial rage.
The police showed up to help them out,
And put us in a cage.
We found ourselves back on that boat,
Whose beam of light had saved us
It took us back across the sea,
Where terror would enslave us.
The shore got close we saw the car,
Sitting still in the desert sand.
And all around were evil men,
From a nearby marauding band.