Community over hostility

We come and we go,

We live and we grow

We dive deeper and we ascend,

In a world where floating on the surface,

And flowing in thoughts, can carry us away.

To a distant land, foreign and strange for some,

For others, their home, a safe place.

Hostile it becomes,

When a race for freedom and safety, turns against one’s race.

In despair,

Some wave before they drown,

In optimism,

we wave to welcome,

Yet another new arrival, a new member to this family.

A family, we call people of connection, people we share

Our values of respect and kindness for human dignity.

We aspire to create unity,

Through belonging and humanity

For is this not what we’re all striving for

A sense of community.

We share who we are, not just by words but what we stand for

On solid ground, we carry our hearts close and our arms wide open

They inspire us, the people from afar to seek for strength,

In raising our voices to brave their courage

A notion coming from afar, yet so close to us.

An ear we lend, an ear we borrow, so hear us out

Bermondsey Welcomes Refugees!

Claire Nilles

February 2021

You can support us to resettle a refugee family and help them to build a new and sustainable life by donating to our Just Giving page