If it was your kid...

This poem is about the tragic Tempi train collision that happened two years ago today. Today and every day of our lives we will continue to ask for justice for the 57 lives that were lost.

If it was your kid, would you sleep at night?

Would the weight of their absence feel heavy inside?

Would their name echo through the halls of your mind,

Or would you just bury the truth with your lies?

If it was your kid, would you call it an accident?

When it's a system ruled by idiots, not that innocent

Would you still count your money while mothers still weep,

As fathers stand silent, too broken to speak?

If we knew how messed up these trains were,

Do you think we would still put our family and friends in there?

If it was your kid, you would not

But now you act like you don't have a heart and say "Why not?"

If it was your kid, would you beg for change?

Would you scream in the streets, raw with rage?

Would you carve their name into a cold, lifeless stone,

Or would you fight for justice so no more die alone?

But it wasn’t your kid, so you turned away,

Made your excuses, thinking everything would be okay.

But we are still here, we won’t forget,

For 57 souls, we’ll scream ‘til the end

On every 28th of February, on every regular day.

Dear government, if it was your kid... would you still look away?

Author's Note

28/02/23, 23:21, the moment the two trains collided in Tempi, Greece all because of a key and for some reason "no one could predict that that would ever happen" which is obviously all false and now the government is trying to ignore it and tells everyone to move on, but we won't. We won't forget this ever! I've also written a greek version of this poem which is more unapologetic, so check it out if you want to, I've posted it with the English translation. If you're joining a protest, please stay safe.

Reviews

[Martiya Daman]

This poem is really sad and powerful. It talks about a big train accident and asks the government if they would care more if it was their own child.

I am very angry because 57 people died, and no one is taking responsibility. It makes you think about how unfair life can be when people in charge don’t fix problems.

I like how it keeps repeating “if it was your kid” because it makes the message stronger. This poem is about justice, and I think it’s really important, Efxaris.

RIP those 57 people 🩷
And to the government, Life is not a joke…

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

Thank you so much for your kind words Martiya ❤️‍🩹 Life can be really unpredictable and the government should take responsibility and fix everything they need to, but the Greek government doesn't want to, they just make up lies, excuses and think we will move on, but this will never be forgotten. People like you give the oxygen the 57 people didn't have (I'm saying this because of the "Δεν έχω οξυγόνο" which means "I don't have oxygen" which is a phrase that was heard a lot that night the moment the collision happened)

[Martiya Daman]

Same with our government. They also just eat sweets and don’t fix roads. Even in Delhi, road conditions are bad. We have to take it seriously now…

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

I am so sorry, I hope everything is fixed there. To be honest in Greece almost everything is messed up and just in bad condition, I hope it gets fixed otherwise when I grow up I may leave and just visit Greece for vacations or to see relatives, because almost nothing is okay here.

[Martiya Daman]

Ah, trash in India everywhere, it is not what you think. A fine well developed country, just dirty.

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

We are well developed too from what I can see, Greece has such a strong background and then this government came and messed everything up. It's honestly so sad we too as kids understand how messed up our countries are.

[Martiya Daman]

True. Cow dung everywhere for us and poor healthcare.

[LisaCarol]

Efxaris - I can feel your frustration and anger in this poem. I wasn’t aware of the accident because the media in the US never reports much international topics. Did you know anyone personally on the train? I applaud you for your desire to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Great wording in this poem that engages the reader to want to understand more about this tragedy.

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

Thank you so much for your review. Don't worry it's okay! If you would like to learn some general information about it you can go to this link on Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tempi_train_crash but if you want to learn how the Greek people feel you could search about it on social media and you could also search Evdokia Tsagkli, she was in the second wagon I think (I am so sorry I don't remember exactly) but she survived the collision and now she shares information and evidence about it through videos in both Greek and English. I watch her on Instagram and her username there is evdokeah. Watching her videos will show you the exact truth and how we feel truly, I tried my best showing how we all feel through my poem but you could learn even more from her. Thankfully I didn't know anyone on the train but unfortunately there was a woman from my city Katerini who died there, Athina Katsara, she was on a trip with her husband Nikos Zisis and he survived but unfortunately she didn't. I listened to his speech at the protest last Friday and it was truly heartbreaking. No one wants this to ever happen again. I appreciate your review! ❤️‍🩹

[Dylan Macadham]

Hits me in the heart, Powerful!
...but sadly yes, if not directly affected, human nature has a way of forgetting.
So many mass shootings on the News, I confess I can't remember the last, except that I think it was a few weeks ago. ...I'm not proud of it, my forgetting, but there it is.

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

Unfortunately yes, if we didn't shout everyday for this murder we would all eventually forget it. But we couldn't, so many people lost their family and friends, we lost souls because of a mistake and no the mistake wasn't about the key, it was that the majority of people voted for this kind of government, one that doesn't take the necessary steps to ensure everyone is safe, one that tells people to move on from such a tragedy, one that tries to lie to our faces, our government is a joke. I am so sorry for the mass shootings, it is unfortunate... It's okay if you forgot it wasn't your intention. Thank you for your review!

[Dylan Macadham]

...and thanks for your understanding.

[JayG]

• If it was your kid, would you sleep at night?

In this you’re letting your own knowledge of the situation that generated the words provide context that the reader lacks. So for you it works as expected. That’s why we must edit from the seat of the reader, who requires context to make the words meaningful. And to that reader:

If it was my kid? Doing what? Doing it where? Driven by what desire or need? As this line is read, it’s meaningless to the reader, because for you each line points to images, ideas, beliefs, and more, all stored and waiting to be evoked in your mind.

The reader? For them, each line points to images, ideas, beliefs, and more, all stored and waiting to be evoked in *YOUR* mind. But without you there to ask...

• Would the weight of their absence feel heavy inside?

Where did this unknown "kid" of unknown gender, age, and background go, and why? You know. The “kid” knows. Shouldn’t the one you wrote it for know as they read? This line is exactly as meaningful to the reader as would be my asking you, “Do you approve of what I did this afternoon," without my making you know what I did.

Sure, if the reader goes to the bottom of the page and reads your note the words will have a bit of context. But they won’t do that. They’ll start reading with what comes first, and have only confusion as to why someone they know nothing about is asking them questions as if they already possessed context.

But that aside, why are you asking the reader about a “kid.” There were no adults on the train? Adults don’t count? In fact, the train was full of students in their twenties, not kids. And based on what I can find, the accident was caused by human error, a switchman who placed the train on the wrong track. That's certainly reason enough for dramatic safety-based changes—like automated switching—to make sure it never happens again. And the government playing games to try to cover up the flaws is reprehensible—but that seems more a matter of politics, something that appealing to empathy is unlikely to change.

And in the end, what makes this a poem? The fact that you have each question on an individual line? Poetry is a LOT more than that.They've been refining the skills of writing it for centuries—reason enough to dig into the skills that make it work so well.

I sympathize with your desire for justice, and, resolution and repair of the whys of the problem. But at the same time, it cannot be undone, so preventing it from happening again should be the the proper focus.

Sorry, but you did ask.

[Alice Cob]

This is a very powerful poem, Efxaris. It's crazy to realize that it was almost two years ago, and even worse that your government has done/did nothing. prayers to all of the deceased's families and loved ones, and yet another reason why the world's government's are so corrupt. The US has been destroyed and shot through, and we are lucky trump managed to get back in office, hopefully y'alls government will grow better too.
Love, Alice

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

Thank you so much for your kind review Alice. It is crazy and not only has the government done nothing to fix it, the train conditions are becoming worse and worse every day. Staff are being fired, by next month there will have been fired at least 100 employees as we know. Before the collision the government would make excuses that they couldn't find 80,000€ to fix the trains (I'm saying this based on what I heard yesterday at the protest I went I'm sorry I can't remember what they had to fix with the trains exactly) before something would go wrong and then after the collision they somehow found 650,000€ to cover up the crime scene and dump the trains, I AM REPEATING THIS DUMP. THE. TRAINS. FROM. THE. COLLISION. at random place where there is wildlife and they did that with no shame. Everything I mentioned is nothing to everything that has happened and everything that is still happening! I really want to leave this country I truly do. I hope y'all's government grows better too!

[Martiya Daman]

I would leave such a country as well.

[Beren]

Ah, I remember this time so well. During the same period, there was a very big earthquake in Turkey, and 100,000 people died due to negligence. A terrible number...
And I remember the news in the foreign press during this period that Turkey and Greece were suffering like two brothers.
I think it is very powerful that Greece still protests to commemorate this event without forgetting it.
Your poem is so powerful and gave me goosebumps. I really commend you for standing tall. It was a very difficult time and I appreciate you still talking about it. READ THIS POEM IN SCHOOLS!

[Efxaris Arampatzi]

Thank you so much for your kind words! I am so sorry that happened in Turkey, 100,000 is too much! Even one life would be too much, no one deserves to die due to the government being lazy! If y'all are protesting too for that earthquake and you join a protest please stay safe. The protests in Athens and Thessaloniki were really messy and I have never felt so much shame for my country before, thankfully here in Katerini we had two protests yesterday and they were pretty much peaceful. I really appreciate your kind words, stay strong there in Turkey too in case anything happens! ❤️‍🩹