DEAD TIME

QuarantIne, expecting the worst—
just like the frequent blackouts in ‘42.
With the blast of sirens, all lights went out,
even the glow of a cigarette was forbidden.
Father patrolled the neighborhood—
an Air Warden with a big flashlight
a white tin hat and our family dog.
All of our curtains were covered in black.
I sat on a backyard bench with my Red Ryder BB gun
ready to shoot the first Nazi that parachuted down.
I’d shoot him in the eye and blind him
for the rest of his stinking life.