Skip to main content
Work with the NEU
No Longer Waiting (After C.P. Cavafy)
by p.a. morbid

The Barbarians have 
breached the walls of the Citadel
and are running amok,
destroying the sacred texts 
of our ancestors.

Where are the Prefects? 
Where are those with the power
to call allies to our side
and stop these Philistines 
from wrecking the temples?

This time the Barbarians 
had no need to scale the walls,
nor rain war upon our battlements, 
because the Leaders and the Prefects 
opened the gates for them.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
bounds
Poetry review / 18 March 2026
18 March 2026

ALAN MORRISON recommends a consummate, heart-warming collection about a working-class upbringing in the industrial north-east

21st Century Poetry / 26 November 2025
26 November 2025

by Christopher Norris

Socialist musicians / Pic: Author supplied
Poetry / 29 May 2025
29 May 2025

Human rights activist PETE STEVENSON, aka Pete the Poet, considers alternative ways of holding a meeting

21st Century Poetry / 28 May 2025
28 May 2025

by Helen McSherry