#Slavic #brothers killing brothers – v2 #poetry #Ukraine #God #prayer #war #terror #genocide #Russia #peace #victory #TarasShevchenko #Taras #Shevchenko #muse #Ukrainian #glory #serfdom #prison #freedom #independence #history #invasion #fouryears

speaking the same language
on both sides of the border...
knowing each other so well,
familial connections, intertwined,
sharing so much history,
commerce and travel,
now in a state of war...
 
brothers killing brothers,
a tale so ancient, recurring,
a story like Cain and Abel...
others watching on the sidelines
as blood fills the streets,
as whole cities are destroyed,
in the crucible of genocide...
 
killing their own kinsmen,
those they dwelt with
as seen so much in the bible...
imperfect analogies, history,
Pushkin assertions and
Shevchenko’s responses -
The primacy of the empires...
 
brothers killing brothers,
from both sides of their border...
the body count rising higher,
the tragedy of the Tsar’s conquest,
the dignity of these people
caught in the cycle of terror
nights of fear and attack...
 
--------------
Edited February 23, 2026
brothers killing brothers – v2
 
one aspect of the full-scale invasion
and war in Ukraine is the
history between Russia and Ukraine,
along with other Slavic nations, such as
Belarus; Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia; and Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia,
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bulgaria.
Edited November 25, 2025
not submissive – v4
https://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2025/11/not-submissive-v4.html
after poem, “not submissive”,
based on the poems, “Šafárik”,
rebuke of Pushkin’s poem,
“To the Slanderers of Russia”,
to submit to the domination of Russia…
by Taras Shevchenko,
about Pavel Jozef Šafárik
Edited November 24, 2025
In Ukrainian (in Aramaic) – v5
https://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2025/11/in-ukrainian-in-aramaic-v5.html
Edited December 1, 2025
Three souls – v4
https://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2025/12/three-souls-v4.html
after poem, “Three souls”,
based on the poem, “The Great Grave”,
by Taras Shevchenko
 
All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026. All rights are reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for usage. See my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com
Poetry Where You Live.
 
poetry, Ukraine, God, prayer, war, terror, genocide, Russia, peace, victory, Taras Shevchenko, Ukrainian, freedom, independence, history, glory, serfdom, prison, invasion, four years,
 
#poetry #Ukraine #God #prayer #war #terror #genocide #Russia #peace #victory #TarasShevchenko #Taras #Shevchenko #muse #Ukrainian #glory #serfdom #prison #freedom #independence #history #invasion #fouryears