Dear All,

Our writing group, Worlds into Words, has produced an e-book of writings (mainly poems) in support of the earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.  All proceeds from the sales will go to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), which brings together all the major charities involved.

 

Fault Line - Writings for Turkey and Syria at link

This book is a collection of poems from 34 poets around the world. The book has been created to raise money for victims and survivors of the earthquake which struck Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023, at 4:17 a.m. Here are some sample poems:

 

The Cord

                                                    by Nishtha Chhabra 

 

Under the rubble of cement and dust,

Among tiling shards and plain old rust,

A man stood upright, big and tall.

His arms nestling something frail and small. 

 

The infant locked her liquid eyes 

With her angel, in human guise.

He held the remnant of her umbilical cord 

Snipped in two - mirroring nature’s discord. 

 

The infant remained quiet, filled with fears. 

She was cautious; no cries, no tears.

Better to stay silent in the midst of this trouble,

Fearing he’ll abandon her in the rubble. 

 

A tale of the rescuer being rescued

From his own distress - an interlude. 

The ruptured cord umbilical

Now forms a bond metaphysical. 

 

Remembrances

                                 by Gerard Hocmard

 

It's first the rumble that wakes you up.

The eerie noise from all around

That makes you wonder and fret.

Then comes the tremor, gentle at first,

A heavy lorry, passing in the street, perhaps?

But you fall from your bed, in gut-wrenching noise

As the world seems to crash - and run outside,

Barefoot, half-naked, to a crowd of zombies,

Haggard and silent, caught in their sleep,

Curlers and nighties, pyjamas, no shoes.

It seems to last and last, the world shaking,

Till daylight comes over the rubble, the tears and the cries,

The frenzy of the search, for victims or one's treasures,

The pain of survivors and the question: what now?

 

Earthquake – a haiku sequence

                                                    by Alan Maley

 

when the earth moves

our confidence collapses,

and with it, our homes …

 

the faintest whimper:

under this pile of rubble –

one child left alive …

 

the earth is hungry –

its belly rumbles and growls –

someone has to pay.

 

under the rubble

one child lives – another dies.

What’s fair about that?

 

this was a wardrobe –

we make do with what we have,

now it’s a coffin …

 

where once olives grew,

they are now planting bodies,

a sterile harvest…

 

deep under rubble,

from the still silence of death,

this small voice of hope …

 

I am sorry

                       by Jane Spiro

 

Sorry is not enough

• a ceiling has fallen
• a house has fallen
• a street has fallen
• a city has fallen

Words are not enough

            -it was my home, it was my life,

            my children born, grew up here, my mother

            grew old here, all the best moments

            I lived here

Money is not enough

            My wife, she was my life, my everything

            my boy, he was my eyes, he was my light

            nothing can bring them back

Hope is not enough

            -what now can I believe?      

            -who now can I trust?

            -what now can I hope for?

            Everything I had is lost.

 

If I could, I would bring you the world.

Words, if only

they were enough.

                 

 

Half-truths and Realities

                                            by Sharoon Sunny

 

We built our cities tall and proud,

On land Nature wouldn’t have allowed.

We paved our roads and cleared the trees,

And drained the rivers with such ease.

 

We dug deep into the earth for fuel,

And ignored warnings and all rules.

We tampered with the earth's foundation,

With no regard for its devastation.

 

And then the day arrived with force,

Nature's wrath taking its course.

The ground shook, the buildings fell,

Our choices had led us to this hell.

 

The tragedy so sudden and swift,

Leaves us feeling small and adrift.

Our pride and arrogance now laid bare,

As we mourn the lives lost in despair.

 

Yet though our choices led to this quake,

We can still make amends, for future’s sake.

And though it may take time to heal,

The human spirit will always prevail.

 

The book also includes a chapter on ways to include the poems into your classroom practice for any teachers who want to raise issues around this event with their students.

The illustrations for each chapter of the book were created using AI and a line or verse from each poem. The 34 images can be downloaded as a zip file along with the book.

I hope you may be interested in buying a copy.  The basic price is $5 - but you can pay more if you wish, simply by changing the amount in the link.

All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Disaster Emergency Committee - Turkey-Syria Earthquake Appeal.

Please also pass on the link to your friends and contacts.

All good wishes,

Alan Maley, on behalf of Worlds into Words Group