THE BLOW OF AN EARTHQUAKE

Haiti , beloved mother,
The earthquake struck you
Right at your very heart.

You cannot count
Your dead, swallowed up
Under the rubble.

Haiti , beloved mother
This disaster was all that was needed
to bow you again to the dust.

You have sown panic
In the heart of the diaspora
And in the international community
That did not know how
To reach you at the end of the line.

Haiti , beloved mother
Mother mourned,
Your children weep
At your sudden death.

You wonder
If you can rise again
After so many years
Of hard work
To gain a taste of peace.

Oh Haiti , beloved mother
This blow has just shattered
The patriotic drive,

the desire to struggle and dream
Of a better future.

You have had suffering enough
To want to say, “Enough”
I can no longer watch my people
Going adrift.

Haiti , beloved mother,
Your children are at the end
Of their rope.
They are just hanging on
Hoping for a miracle.

You want to live and breathe
Better economically.
You ask us once again
Not to lower our arms.

Haiti , beloved mother
Your dead without knowing it
Awaken the consciousness
Of countries deciding your fate.

You count on your children
And on the international community
To respond, not only
To the urgency of the moment
But rather to a process
Of economic renewal.


O beloved Haiti
All you have left is
The flame of Hope
That you pass on to each of us
That we may rise from your ashes
Jan. 16, 2010