Eyes open, see the suffering feel despair
Eyes closed, see the death can barely breathe the air
Awake hearing screams, asleep always in my deams
The day a battle, heart feels so fragile
The night a curse, no hell could be worse,
The end feels so far, wishing it to come near
How much longer must I stay here
Beaten broken embattled scarred
Heart turning black cold and hard
Relentless reasoning for leaving
Hard to slow the panicked breathing
Goodbye pain, goodbye tears
Goodbye neverending merciless years
But the screams, they pierce from the distance
Strengthening resolve for the resistance
Eyes open, see the suffering feel despair
Embrace it fully if I dare
The time will come but not today
We must fight we must stay
They need us now more than ever
We will fight on forever.
Strength and courage to keep the demons away
For the activists who live with it day after day
And love hope and light
For the animals
Who live with it night after night.
Mike is COK's Director of Investigations and a former investigator.
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