worlds apart

        I was thinking of you
               and wanted to write,
          so I sat down on the bench
                                         still wet from the rain
                                                   and began …
        the waters were calm
               and the crows were calling
                                                   greetings
                        to all who would pay attention
                          on the morning airwaves,
        I listened to the distant crickets
                and watched 
                                   a sowbug
                                    crawling laboriously
                  on his own meaningful mission,
      and wondered
               how
                        we can be on the brink 
                                                    of war
               when     nature is at peace,
                         how can we      be
                                   on the brink of war 
                                   so terrifying in possibilities
                 when
                             nature is at peace?
               boaters were out on the lake
                 my neighbour mowed his lawn
                   and the clouds were gently gathering
                                                     without a sound.
      and then
                         the rain began to 
                                  fall
             and I was forced to retreat indoors
      as the crows halted their cries
         the sowbug took shelter
        and the crickets hid  in silence.
               this poem is for you…
                         the world
                            is still beautiful
                though our countries speak of war.