by Jared Feldschreiber

Created on: July 17, 2009

For Natalya Estemirova:

For I didn't know you
Until you died a callous murder;
Though your integrity lay intact.
For the bravery you humbly hid
Beneath the countless souls you helped to protect
Somewhere near the perilous Caucasus Mountains.

Natalya:
I marvel at your courage
And I've never met you
Though I would have wanted.

You met the tragic irony of your own courage:
You met the same fate of others you sought to protect.

Natalya:
For we remember you by your first name alone;
You were murdered for your cause
And your cause had you murdered.

Natalya:
You were in a line of other needless deaths
Like Anna, Stanislav Umar, Sulim, Ruslan, bludgeoned in cold blood;
The convoluted Russian spy games reduced to sheer chicanery
Masking the simplicity of shrouding the truth.

Natalya:
You did not die in vain;
Your enemies thought you were a robber of truth
And they will be punished.
You are somewhere amongst us
Beyond the withering trees.

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