Too Much Tragedy

A unique experience in a multi-media world -

tragedies of all kinds can filter in;
civil wars in foreign lands, water rights for the Africans
personal stories from the latest massacre,

extreme close-ups of the most recent  storm.
At some point we need to look at our own
circumstances and focus there instead.
Celebrate the blessing that come our way.

Imagine if we lived in the seventeen hundreds
we would not be aware of those other stories
except if we received a letter or heard gossip
several months or years after the fact.

When the dust blew in the Midwest
it was the starving families in rag torn
vehicles that made us aware of the calamity
and only as they intruded on our peace,

were we forced to deal with their poverty.
It is easier to create a “la la” land
where we live and play and not to take on
the problems of those who live faraway.