Friendly Fire Poem by Robin Bennett

It's tomorrow in Australia and
everything is still the same
elegant dining is
now coffee and
donuts
fine wine is
nothing but
smashed grapes

The war rages on-
you have your
weapons and I've
lost mine
I sit defenseless
off my imaginary
great barrier reef
torn and shredded
by coral weapons
I bleed and you
find me

I look for night in
Japan trying to
blend in
millions of people
rush about
but of course
I stand out

I imagine the
arid desert
bland and
colorless
I adorn myself
in beige
and choke on
blown dust

A black sedan
pulls up in
the drive
you peer through the
ghostly white curtains
the government tells
you they found
me.
Dead from friendly fire.