The Children of Peshawar

I am lost in the darkness

Can you hear me calling?

The nights pass

The days pass

The years pass

And I continue to call

My days are ash grey

And my nights are sleepless

No visions come

No dreams come

No peace comes

And I continue to cry

This is a poem written by a young Class VI student of The New School in Lahore for the students who were killed by terrorists in Peshawar. She plays badminton and football and this is her first poem that was sent to The Citizen. There are several poems, songs, essays penned by old and young on this tragedy in which nine gunmen from the Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) shot down at least 145 persons at the Army Public school in Peshawar. The militants, all of whom were foreign nationals, included one Chechen, three Arabs and two Afghans. They entered the school and opened fire on school staff and children,killing 145 people, including 132 schoolchildren between eight to 18 years of age in merciless action that their leadership justified and applauded each other for later.