A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words: Thou Shalt Live By This!

I see a cheese, probably old with some red spots dotted on its face. I feel that the owner had kept it safe to last for perhaps a longer time but it started going bad.

When the land was calm and serene
When the children play freely
When even adults roam about with ease
When every meal is gotten with ease

I was the toast of the town
I was the most sought after meal
I was a regular on the menu
I was the popular choice

Soon the tide changed
And the centre can no longer hold
Gunshots were heard from a distance
And the once peaceful town
Suddenly became a theatre of war

Children ran away for shelter
Adults ran away from conscription
And food became hit potato overnight
I too became scarce and rationalized

Hunger kept ravaging the land
Children kept dying in droves
Adults kept fleeing to cooler climes
But nobody could see me easily anymore

I became a commodity to be rationed
I became stored to be consumed:
For weeks, months and years
I became a scarce commodity

I am usually fresh
I am usually consumed:
Straight from the oven
I am usually cripsy

But everything changed
I even felt the nasty change
And started bleeding from:
My hideouts
For that was all I could do

Men no longer eat me
In public with aplomb
I became a regular host:
To mucus and fungi

When will this end?
I kept asking myself
For I want to return
To those good old days
To be eaten fresh
In a serene environment.

This is my entry for the #freewritehouse "A picture is worth a thousand words".