afraid I can't follow the prompt
it's entirely outside my area of expertise
guess I could make it all up
but that's not my thing today

thought I would be writing truth
and deep strongly held beliefs
but the prompt about news reporters
and grabbing for glory

doesn't sound like my kind of story
glad for the time limit
as it ticks away I think
at least I will not be verbose

and yet there is something
I really wanted to say about
praying for peace and going to war
and fighting terror with terror

that niggles at my gut
almost all the time now
can't we do better than this
can't we please do better