Song for the New Year - a poem.

Note :(The 'we' refers to its universal use – the cry of a few speaking for all. This poem is dedicated to the hardy souls of Occupy Cork, braving it for all, while they 'occupy' an empty NAMA* building in the hope of opening it for public use. Also this is not a song in its essence, but a cry from the heart for what is needed.)

And so we* speak of occupy*,

it's the new outcry.

We're no longer the rebels*,

but the keepers of human dignity

in the face of inhumanity.

We, the people, occupy Cork

and build the trust of the groudswell

once again from its broken state.

We fly the flag of human need

and we won't go home just yet

because we've a new one for all.

On Christmas Eve a miracle took place

or so we'd have you believe,

for we have entered the realm of make-believe

to bring about our goal for the common people.

It's not the one written about of long ago

but a new miracle of giving for receiving.

A building's key was thrust into our hands,

or so we'd have you believe,

a glass and concrete of many levels

and now we, the people, occupy this shelter

for all our use in the face of humanity.

Is this a taste of what's to come

coutrywide, worldwide and the galaxy?

Can the sharing spirit pervade?

We are in the legal wrong of things, of course,

but our hearts are in the right place.

And this glass and steel tall box is ours

for the moment, we mean no harm,

just a way must prevail, we're here to stay,

if you the people will let us, for your sake

and that of all our children.

We don't mean to deceive or wish ill,

just joy to the world, that inner voice

we all possess, that choir of voices together.

Will the wont of new ways prevail

with the voice of the people,

or so we'd have you believe

no argument to decry,

no inequitable dominance,

no struggle for power and control?

Are the forces gathering outside our box?

Will the might of the legal sword break us down?

Can we, the people, start a new chapter and begin again?

Will the force of the troika break us?

The taxman cometh again, we're told,

to bleed the empty purses,

or so the government would have us believe.

The elders in our midst speak

and voice their concerns for all

and we listen, but the taxman cometh

and the voices fade

in the fluster of empty pockets.

And so we occupy this city

for the people's voice

and fly the flag,

and we won't go home just yet

because we've a new one for all

or so we'd have you believe.

It remains to be seen what will happen

when we open our doors to you the people

and you flood the floors of concrete and steel

while the legal forces wait below

and capture our hearts and minds

and capture our goals

and close the doors once more.

We mean no harm,

just a way must prevail,

we're here to stay,

if you the people will let us,

for your sake

and that of all our children.

* Refers to the National Asset Management Agency - www.nama.ie.

* Refers to www.occupycork.org.

* Cork is known in Ireland as the 'Rebel County' - a reference to the days when the rebels opposed and fought the English government for sovereignty over the Republic. It is also a reference to the 'toughness' and endurance of the 'rebels.' In sporting fixtures it is common to hear this reference, nowadays.