a

the guns fall silent

the guns fall silent 
and i can see a girl with 
laughter in her eyes

this traffic is a 
demented video game 
with only one life

i traded these chains 
for a walking stick and a 
pocket full of sand

if i want to raise 
a new life from old ashes 
i must burn this one

i hope to win but 
hope is not a strategy 
and strategy wins

artillery reaps 
a bumper crop of corpses 
under brutal rain

a lifetime of light
contributes but a flicker 
to the vasty dark

what is more lofty 
than for a hundred men to 
march forward to death

a splash of water 
a mosquito changes wings 
froggy paradise

i visit winter 
but i am a mindful guest 
and never stay long