It was as quiet as smoke here then
and bore the same warning of danger.
It was even the leaves going quiet,
the fish making themselves invisible. It was
the absence of the packs of wild dogs
that had tortured us for weeks, everything
taking its rest, gathering into itself
to grow roots and new sources of anger.
We grew tired of the insidious tide
dragging us in and out of alarm.
There were no lists anymore, there was
nothing that needed our immediate attention.
The defense system had broken down,
the fire boxes stopped working.