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Poetry Archive Now Wordview 2024: The War is Past (Continuous)
by H.B. Asari
Poetry Archive Now Wordview 2024: The War is Past (Continuous)
The war came suddenly
and also has not yet arrived.
The war started 200 years ago in a room
thousands of miles away as strange men quartered
lands and bodies between themselves
and called it peace.
The war starts when bands of men rove the streets
with machetes and kerosene looking
for people who do not sound like them.
The war will start with milkweed petals
stained red on the side of the road
and a child at home waiting
for someone who will never return.
From childhood we waited for the war,
though the war was already there.
In pockets of places we never thought about
with burnt bodies and stolen girls.
When we were scared
our parents kissed our foreheads
and cooed away thoughts of the war
under our beds. At the same moment,
a mother tucked her children
into a hole in the wall and hoped
they would be unseen
as the war barreled through. Some were.
The former boys
in the creeks drink from the iridescent
water and remember the war,
the war that took their fathers
and orphaned their futures;
the war that adopted them, culled them
sons. They pour libations of black gold into the water
to the war. They raise their rifles in reverence.
The government
scoured stories of the war
from the tongue of its survivors. The government
makes children put their hands over their hearts
and chant above the cracking of gunfire
‘There is no war. There is no war. There is no war.’
The war came / The war is come / The war comes
A special thank you to our WordView 2024 poets.
Hear from two of our winners this year on what the Archive and winning has meant to them:
From William Wyld:
'As a neuro-diverse poet who has struggled to engage with books, reading aloud made literature accessible to me. The Poetry Archive is such a valuable resource and to be included as a winner is a wonderful surprise, giving me validation as an artist, the motivation to keep writing and performing, and the confidence to submit my work widely. I recorded at the last minute, walking by a river through the undergrowth as the light was fading, so my poem could be heard with the movement of the landscape. It was an experiment, but good things happen when we take risks.'
From Sarah Morris:
'I felt that I would enter the PAN competition as my last submission of the year as it is a fun one to do. I enjoy reading out my poems and doing videos and bonus with PAN as they are put up online. I like that these poems are accessible by everyone.
When I got the ' you are a winner' email – I felt super impressed that I had been included for a top 20 selection – I felt validated that my work has been recognised and it has inspired me to keep on writing and re drafting next year.'
From Nuri Rosegg:
'A British friend told me about PAN. I’m grateful to her and to PAN that I could enter this fabulous poetry competition. This year (just like last year when I entered for the first time) I felt grateful, excited and a little bit nervous due to the video-making challenge. However, it was great fun to read out loud my own piece of work. It’s another dimension being able to present my poem to the audience “live” from around the world than just having them read my text. Being one of the winners this year makes me so happy, grateful and proud. Thanks, PAN!'
From Julie-Ann Rowell:
"It is an honour to have my reading of my poem ‘Newsworthy’ chosen for the Poetry Archive Now! WordView 2024 project, representing poets writing in English in 2024. This particular year has been deeply challenging, and I wanted to write about George Orwell for whom the exchange of information and how this can be distorted was of prime significance. His world view is as relevant today as it ever was. Poetry has an important task to do in representing what is happening in the world and the Poetry Archive does a fantastic job of storing recordings of poets at work for future generations. Hearing poets’ voices brings their words into a more personal and lasting frame, and the Archive is free for anyone to listen in and find their favourite poet or discover a new one. I am so proud to be a part of it."
See the collectionWatch the full Wordview 2024 playlist