Parents of the Dead

Out on the streets we heard the blast An explosion, then a commotion A Palestinian iconoclast Brain-dead with devotion And in the aftermath the chill As we took in amongst the kill Our Sarah's bloodied form lay still In expelled animation We are the parents of the dead The angry, innocent bereaved Instead of hatred we share grief No matter what our race or creed A rifle-shot, a ricochet Farrago down in Gaza Stealthily searching a passageway Snap-sighting down a laser An Israeli soldier on patrol Sniping at shadows in cubby-holes Took out Badawi scurrying home From school to you, his father We are the parents of the dead The angry, innocent bereaved Instead of hatred we share grief No matter what our race or creed Each retribution brings no end To slaughter of the innocents We call on both sides to repent So wounds can heal and hearts can mend May cousins learn to understand How two states share the Promised Land We are one, Arabs and Israelis The Circle of Bereaved Families We are the parents of the dead The angry, innocent bereaved Instead of hatred we share grief No matter what our race or creed We are the parents of the dead We are the parents of the dead