I See the Enemy From Far, Far Away

I see the enemy

From far

Far

Away

It’ll be days

Even weeks

Before they get here

But I know they’re coming

I stir my tea

I walk back to the table

I finish my breakfast

I let out the dog

And I wait

Some will say

When they hear about this

That I am a fool

For not hurrying

Not gathering up my things

Not putting the dog

In the car

And driving as far

And as fast
As I can

But the enemy is coming

And they can move faster

Than I can

And there are more of them

And they can spread out

And they can surround me

And there is nowhere I can go

That will help me evade

Or hide from them

So I stir my tea

I sit at my table

And I read the paper

I look at the news

I think about

What day

The enemy will arrive

And what I’ll be doing

When they do

When the enemy

Came for my grandparents

They set their house on fire

And laid down inside it

I won’t do that

I’m not interested

In making a statement

For the enemy

The enemy will not be

Impressed

With my statements

And they don’t want my house

So why burn it down?

To deny them

Something

They never wanted

In the first place?

The dog comes back inside

I give him a piece of bacon

And watch him trot off

To the corner he likes to sit in

So he can chew on his treat

Without me nearby

Telling him to enjoy it

I don’t hear the stampede

Of horses

Or the clatter of armor

Or the banging

Of enemy drums

But I know they’re coming

And they will give me

No chase

I am not too old

To run from them

But I am thinking on

The idea

Of standing

At the edge of my yard

As they come running

Up the hill

I think of myself

Holding a cup of tea

If I have time to make it

Smiling as they run
Past, and probably

Over me

Not even bothering to stop

Or perhaps they will stop

Because something about me

Standing lonely

Will make me suspect

And they’ll want to make sure

I am not some sort of trap

With assassins laying in wait

To take down my enemies

But no, it will just be me

And once they know it

They’ll punish me severely

For causing them to stop

And delay their pillage

That will be the most

I can contribute

To the cause

But I hope I get

To finish my tea first

That’s all I can hope for

Anything else

Might be asking

Too much