NOMANSLAND
by
PETER CHARLTON

A poem for the dispossessed

we'd heard that streets were paved with gold across the sea
we'd heard that people smiled on't dispossessed you see
so we ran away from poverty
to angelsland across the sea
for jesus said the poor are blessed
and those who are dispossessed
those that hunger
those that thirst
the first are last the last are first
so here we came
to stake our claim
in Nomansland


the streets weren't paved with gold when we got here
p'raps somebody got here first and dug it all up
the people's hearts weren't lined with gold when we got here
p'raps they didn't have a lot and used it all up


so we'd nothing in our bellies
and we'd nothing in our purse
all we found was man's indifference
all we heard was t'beggar's curse
we ran away from poverty
ran into something worse
NOMANSLAND.


© Peter Charlton April 2005