The day began much like any day,
butterflies swarmed and robins sang.
The fragrance of pine forests
mixed with salt air of the seas.

Waves of grain sent ripples across golden fields,
and in a clear blue sky a lone eagle
circled in currents of cold air
as innocent children played their games of hide and seek.

White-haired grandmothers crocheted doilies
for under the tea cups of small town preachers,
while new mothers sang soft lullabies
to those who will inherit this Earth.

But war came and the sky turned black.
The air smelled of smoke and the stench of death,
while mothers knelt
crying by rivers of blood.