An Ode to Aberfan

"Messenger: first of all, in the plainest language, the children are dead.
Chorus: Our children are dead and the coal board is to blame.

Messenger: Autumn morning saw an unpredictable disaster,
What was to happen that day, no one had imagined.
Over the years, the spring that sat there had corroded,
And the weather weakened the slagheap.
Coal dust and rocks became heavy and slipped,
Taking upon them, the fate of those children.
In the school everything was as usual,
Some children learnt while some others played, on that day in 1966.
A rumbling sound was heard,
getting louder and louder,
until... It sounded like a jet plane.
Silence, Nothing, Stillness.
There was pain and fear before it even hit.
Panic everywhere, trying to find where to hide.
And then disaster hit.
Death was about, those who survived rushed to the rescue.
Digging out like dogs to a born,
Hands and fingers raw with blood.
Lives were lost on that day, and only one to blame.
What that morning held, is everyone's nightmare.
Count yourself lucky that you weren't there."

Princess Mavuru – Year 10