The Newspaper Boy

by Niamh Hegarty

He stands in the centre of the rubble.
He looks around, smelling the destruction,
Hearing the cries ringing out, he will run.
The newspapers will slip from his grasp and
he will run past pharmacies and chemists;
or whatever is left of these buildings.
When he is safe, he is haunted by violence
All he will remember are the troubles.

Reproduced with author’s permission. Written during Poetry as Commemoration workshops led by James Conor Patterson at Mount Lourdes Grammar School, Enniskillen in November 2023.