Cafe Before the War

Small Table

coffee and scones

in the distance sirens ring

as the waiters sing a familiar song.

Then a flare of smoke appears,

another landmark disappears.

It's another day

in a cafe before the war, where cafe poetry fills the air.

Thought we would travel

far from home,

across the Atlantic

for a little romantic holiday.

Here we are,

in a bistro in the Middle East,

sipping lattes.

Does anyone care about the violence?

Is it all about who wins?

Who shoots who?

Can guns ever be silenced?

Two more coffees,

then tally up the score.

While we sit here in

our cafe before the war.