What I do know

by Myra King


What I do know
are wars and pandemics
arise in a flash
but are never over by Christmas

What I do know
is that children are our greatest love
and deepest anguish when lost
to mishap or design

What I do know
is old friendships are the best
and the worst when betrayal
feels harder to bear than death

What I do know
is religion is a comfort
or a curse if fanaticism takes it over
to the power and the wealth

What I do know
is evil does exist and nature can be brutal
far more
than imagined in element or mind

What I do know
is good health not wealth brings happiness
but poverty never
buys choices

What I do know
is poetry cannot be fiction
if it lives in love and truth
however fierce

* * * * *

Myra King lives on World's End Highway in the South Australian Outback with her rescue greyhound, Sparky. Her poems and short stories, many of which have won awards, have been published in print and online, in literary magazines, anthologies and papers including Writing in a Woman's Voice, Boston Literary Magazine, Puncher &Wattmann, October Hill NY, Islet, Rochford Street Review, EDF, Heron's Nest and San Pedro River Review.