War Poem by Alyssa Marquardt

There's a reason they call it fatalities,
and casualities.
But such a God as Fate would never agree
with the sick abuse of the word casual.

I sit in class playing with the edges of my paper
while the anchorman tells about the War with Germany,
But I think of a more recent war....


So here's how THIS war plays out:

I hop from rock to rock.
Knowing that if I fail
to hit that spot,
I'll slowly drown in the shallow waters of society.
The waves that sway to and fro never knowing any way to go-
but down,
pull at me with a force great enough to move the moon.
As days go by, the spaces get wider-
But my jump gets stronger.
Waters rush faster.
Swish, swish, swish.

Temptation fills my mind,
But when I lean over the edge to see what lies below me,
I laugh.
and jump again.

Now on the other side of the water,
Rain pours to fill my next obstacle.
I sit inside a warm glass box,
Waiting for the rain to pass.
Watching tears clash against the clear sides,
Tip, tap.
He wants to play.
But I sit still and wait.

Suddenly a bright gleam of sun collides off my box,
A splash of colors fall across the asphalt and I laugh.

Time for round two.