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Aug 07
poem 5 comments
Galaxy777

Black Rain

This week 73 years ago, the American B-29 bomber dropped the first deployed atomic bombs, Little Boy and Fat Man, on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The blast and resulting radiation poisoning took the lives of over 200,000 people. ‘Black rain’ is the term used to describe the appearance of the nuclear fallout that fell from the sky after the bombings. The following poem is my response to this controversial event that shook the course of history.

Black Rain

I

The rain had come
and it was black.
Children cried,
the fires burned,
and the rain
singed the ashes.
Tyranny rose,
civilization fell,
with the darkened skies.

II

The rain had come
and it was black.
The black rain passed.
And so did the people.
Thousand by thousand
they departed forever.

III

The rain had come
and it was black.
How many years
of iniquity
before the people learn?
How many lives
swept away
by the winds of war?
As rain fell
that fateful day,
the pride,
the hope,
the will,
of a people
was crushed.

IV

The rain had come
and it was black.
And a nation fell.
But the fallen
will always
rise again.
Brick by brick,
soul by soul,
was the nation
rebuilt.

V

The rain had come
and it was black.
A people suffered,
a people feared,
a people torn,
but not defeated.
The rain had come.
It was black.
But the people 
emerged strong.
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Posted: 08.07.18
About the Author: Galaxy777
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Discussion

Comments

  1. aesythe
    Aug 07, 2018

    Galaxy777, this is an important piece of history for us all to remember - thanks for bringing its anniversary to our attention. This piece expresses emotion while still maintaining clarity and strength of message. It's an incredible tribute. Because of the timeliness of this poem as well, I have chosen it for immediate publication in our online literary magazine "The Crow." Feel free to check it out here: https://medium.com/the-crow

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  1. Hazel.C.
    Aug 07, 2018

    Hi Galaxy777! First of all, congratulations on having your piece published on medium, it's message is very important, and needs to be read and remembered! The imagery and emotion you portray in simple, yet incredibly symbolic words is very powerful. I think the greatest strength of this poem is that it's simultaneously heartbreaking, and empowering.

    Second, while there's so much that works well in this poem, I am a firm believer that writing can also be improved, and while reading this, I had a few ideas of how you could play with the repetition and word choice to make this piece even more powerful. Let me know if you're interested in hearing them, and I'll write them out in annotation form. Thank you for sharing and reminding us of the tragedy, and effects of this event,
    ~Hazel

    ~Hazel

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  1. Galaxy777
    Aug 07, 2018

    Hey, Hazel! Yeah, it would be great to hear them! This was my first draft, so I was hoping I could get a few comments and edit. Thanks so much!

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  1. Hazel.C.
    Aug 09, 2018

    Glad you're open to feedback and revision, it's definitely an important part of the writing process! I just finished up the annotations (which you can view by hovering your mouse (computer) or tapping (touchscreen) the highlighted text). All of my suggestions are only that, so feel free to take the ones that work for you, and ignore others. Let me know if you have any difficulties, comments, or questions,
    ~Hazel

    ~Hazel

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  1. Galaxy777
    Aug 07, 2018

    I thought this was an important historical event, and I hope this piece conveys, even at the smallest level, how much and how long these people were forced to suffer. Thank you so much for your support!

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