That Day

I will never forget that day
that day
When the militia came.

A peaceful evening
Children playing
Birds chirping
Footballs bouncing and bobbling
As me and my friends
Tugged and tussled and wrestled
From one end of the village
To the other.

Elders sat along the street curbs
Relaxing in the evening sun
Telling stories of the past
To the younger children

My mother, brother and father at home
Preparing food
And working hard
Caring, and loving
This was my home
In Darfur

until the peace was broken
When the militia came
trucks,
cars,
camels
Darting through the desert
Dressed from head to toe
In a ghostly white
Jet planes screeching in the sky

There was only time to scream
As bombs from above smashed through that crowd of children
As bullets heckled the elders and their listeners

There was only time to run
As all that was behind collapsed in a heap
And all in front of me
Decapitated
From the direct hit of dropping bombs
As flames engulfed our homes

There was only time
For my tears to drip in despair
As the militia stormed my home
Firing shots
Through their fearful mercilessness
My mother, my brother of 5 years, and my father
Granted their final resting place
As I head over the hills
Into the sea of free space
The sound of bullets, death, and the crackling of flames behind me,
into the distance.

Heading into distant sands
I wonder to myself
Where now?