You Ended Our Lives

This day wasn’t meant for us
At least, we didn’t think so
This hate crime shouldn’t have happened
We didn’t do anything wrong
You didn’t even know us
Why did you take us away from our loved ones?

You ended our lives.

Our day had just begun
We all gathered for a meal
We didn’t expect it to happen in a temple
Your intrusion took us by surprise
We were not ready to go
You didn’t give us a chance.

You ended our lives.

For a while we were forced to watch our backs
We were threatened
We were victimized and terrorized
We lived in constant fear
Yet, we hoped still
For a change of some sort.

You ended our lives.

We had lives of our own
We were alive and happy
We had duties and responsibilities
We had families and friends
We had dreams too, you know
Which are now just memories …

You ended our lives.

We knew a day would come
A day chosen for us by our Creator
We didn’t expect it to happen today
We didn’t expect it to happen here
We didn’t expect it to be tragic
We didn’t expect it to end by your hand.

You ended our lives.

© 2012 Joan Ambu. All rights reserved.