THE WOMAN OF FALLUJAH

She had just sent her last child off to school
and cleaned the house, now she had time for a break.
She thought about her man and how she missed him.

When he was home he was such a bore.
He did everything in a set routine
from getting dressed to eating a meal
even his love making was predicable
(he thinks he is such a lover).

But all those little things
that irritated her when he was around
become enchanting when he is away
Yes - she missed him.

She wants to be bored by him now.
Having him around is better
than not having him around
She worries about him
The streets are so dangerous.

Suddenly there is a knock at the door
Slowly she wakes from her day dream
The knock is more insistent
She jumps to her feet
She's at the door flinging it wide.

Four foreign soldiers
Stand there with weapons
Ready for anything
That they may find.

She asks them what they want
They do not speak her language
They motion her away from the door
They walk into her home instead
They do not smile nor does she.

She is afraid for herself
But thankful
that the kids are at school
The soldiers don't look at her but
In everything else they search.

They are professional in their looking
But take care not to break any of her things
She knows they will find nothing
That is what they find.

When the search is over they smile and nod
She smiles and nods in return
They take their leave
The last one gives a little wave.

"That was not so bad" she thinks
When she is alone in her home
"American soldiers are not so bad
I could tell they had good mothers
They treated me with respect.

I wish the kids had been here to see
How well they treated me
Maybe then they wouldn't believe
The lies of the men in the street."

THE WOMAN OF FALLUJAH

©Copyright November 22, 2004 by Roger Liebmann