Day 572

She went to the first open pharmacy,
the one nearest to where she was staying,
to see if they had formula
for her infant.  None.  Two other
pharmacies told her the same.
She walked home, thinking
how she could feed him, how
to keep him alive.  Her milk,
sparse to begin with, long since
dried up.  No water available,
no way to assuage his hunger.
Maybe her friend, whose baby
was killed only days
ago, who had been nursing him?
Would she still have milk?
Could she ask a woman
who had no child anymore
to feed her child?  These
were the thoughts running
through her mind
as she walked, as
she approached her tent,
listening to the sound —
under the buzz of drones, 
of low-flying planes — 
of her baby crying.  His cries
still vigorous despite having
no milk; his cries — consoling
and wrenching to her
at once — telling the world
Are you listening?  I’m hungry,
I exist and I want to remain alive.