It was a bright day of pleasant summer heat

The people looked cheerful and sweet and

My heart was upbeat

My happiness was lost when I saw a man shouting

“Come! Sale!” And

I discovered that he was selling humanity away

Seeing the crowd surrounding him spoilt my day

How can humanity be sold?
The world suddenly felt cold

It had lost its delight

The people no longer looked happy and bright

How can humanity be sold?
“Why not?” said the man

When people can sell their souls

To achieve their goals

When tyrants resort to genocide

And even that is justified

When the rich man doesn’t bat an eye

No matter how many starve and die

I looked at the crowd surrounding the man

And moved forward to buy as much as I can

                                                    ~ Maliha Iqbal

                                                   Aligarh, India