An image lights up 

Blaring the news to a room of silence

My stomach twists with anxiety 

I see a selection of letters in the headline

 

I can already sense the looming terror that is yet to feel

An amount 

Along with the word "dead"

As the world fades into the background while I digest a news that is an empty hug

 

Click 

I see these lives flash away 

Click 

This is our world 

 

These hate speeches wrap around my head

People who were snatched up in a storm of violence that they had no part in

Only being themselves

Humans no more no less yet more are gone leaving broken spirits and glassy eyes

 

Bang! 

Another crash into a fire 

Bang!

We tear each other down to burn

 

An attack on people who like me are LGBT

Yet I sit safe watching as the world is for themselves

Words go a long way yet action is dire

Where is the hope that will give us strength

 

Earth, continents, countries, provinces, cities, states

This is where we live

Where our descendants will be

Who do we want to be?

What comes next?