Air

She gasped for breath that day

And I,

I was useless,

Almost.

Asthma, in a panic

And I panicked too.

What to do?

What to do!

Hands flailing, breath wheezing,

Drowning for want of air.

Eyes wide,

Terrified.

I was there,

With a phone, that’s all.

One call.

Take charge,

Take control,

Take inhaler

And point

And press

And pray

And it worked.

 

Watching

Someone gasp for air,

My mum,

Helpless to help

But still,

It went well

With advice,

Calmly given

And actions taken,

Eventually.

 

Listening

To reports

Of chemical

Warfare,

I cry.

I die a little,

Remembering

That day.

How dare they?

How dare they!

Air,

First on the hierarchy of need.

Not greed, but necessity.

 

Shoot me,

Stab me,

Bomb me,

Kill me quickly.

Do not take

My air.

Seconds of drowning,

A lifetime of suffering.

Terror in eyes

Not easily forgotten.

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