The Farmer and the Herdsman
I wait for mercy, for a sign, A word before my end of time.
I was just a farmer, twenty years old,
Waiting for my first child to hold.
What did I know of fights and blades?
Just crops to plant, the land to raise.
Why did he come with a knife in hand?
Did he see me as a thief on my own land?
Should I have run, let him take my life?
Is it a crime to fight and survive?
They took me away, locked me inside,
Seven years of waiting, no chance to hide.
When they judged me, they said I should flee
Should I have died to keep my hands clean?
Ten years lost, my daughter grows,
A child I've never come to know.
Does she hear my name with shame?
Am I just a story filled with blame?
Would they hang me if they knew my fear?
If they felt a knife so close, so near?
If they were there on that dusty farm,
Would they let the blade do harm?
I fought to live, is that a sin?
Should I have let the knife sink in?
Is justice blind or does it choose
Who gets to win, who gets to lose?
I wait for mercy, for a sign,
A word before my end of time.
Can they see a man who tried to live?
Is there no room left to forgive?
About the Poem
Sunday Jackson, a hardworking farmer, was brutally attacked by a herdsman on his own farm. The assailant, armed with a knife, left Sunday with no choice but to defend himself. In the ensuing struggle, Sunday was forced to take the life of his attacker.
Despite acting in self-defense, Sunday was arrested and jailed for over a decade. During his incarceration, he was denied the opportunity to meet his unborn child, and his wife, unable to cope with the situation, left him.
In a shocking turn of events, the government has now decided to pursue capital punishment, seeking to hang Sunday for an act of self-defense. This devastating outcome has raised questions about justice, morality, and the protection of human rights.
About the Creator
Sebastian Hills
Sebastian Hills weaves words like a storyteller sitting by the fire, turning thoughts into poetry that lingers in the mind. Inspired by history, culture, and everyday life. I also Found a Media Company Villpress
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Trickle Them Down, But Not Out
The thing about smart people is that they should know better, but alas, intelligence is not the same as wisdom. Not only do the mistakes of experts too short on vision—when they are not corrected—have the potential to do great and far-reaching damage, but they also undermine public confidence in the very notion of expertise. This is particularly so when expertise is wielded in defence of the rich and powerful as a cudgel against those laid low. As an academic, this lack of faith in “so-called experts” is painful to see as it plays out in the spread of dis-/misinformation, conspiracy theories, and anti-intellectualism writ large. But it is also an understandable impulse given the catastrophic failure of an economic ideology pushed by certain economic experts. Supply-side economics has shaped a broken system for the last half-century and has arguably done more to undermine the fabric of the American Dream than any policy framework of the past century.
By Cory Wright-Maley6 days ago in Humans
Comments (1)
Oh my 😢😭 So heart-wrenching story 🥹😭 Thanks for letting me know his story through your writing