RITUALS

by Marguerite G. Bouvard


            Just below the altar
in Greek and Russian Orthodox churches
             are rows of candles,
and in the streets of Kyiv after the Russians left
            are rows of blown out candles
rows of shattered apartment buildings, corpses,
            rows of candles blown out
with no place to bury them with rituals, or grace,
            but plastic body bags,
in the mass graves of dug trenches, no place to go
            when fleeing, and the red cross
convoy with food and medicine for Mariupol stalled
            one day, after another, after.....
Say their names over and over again; of the child,
            of the mother, father, brother, sister;
Anna, Daniela, Anastasiya Anatoly, Vladysav
            so they will not disappear
in silence. Open the doors of your hearts
            where the light of candles
shimmers with their memories, always with love.
             

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Marguerite G. Bouvard is the author of 12 poetry books, two of which have won awards including the MassBook Award for Poetry. She has also written a number of non-fiction books on women's rights, human rights, social justice, grief, and has just finished one, Healthcare Workers on the Frontline of the Pandemic. Her poetry collection The Cosmos of the Heart came out fall 2020. Her latest poetry collection Shades of Meaning came out February 2022.