Day 514/Ceasefire Day 44

Will it start again, the bombing? the boy
is asking his mother.  She is laying a blanket
over him, all she has to keep him warm.
The nights are cold.  The rains stop,
then start again.  This week, she thinks,
some infants have already died, freezing.
There are things as dangerous as bombings,
she says to herself, rubbing the boy’s
feet to warm them.  Tonight 
they have eaten, the battery
of their lantern is still working,
the skies are still empty.  Other things
besides bombings can kill, she
thinks to herself.  Her son
closes his eyes.  She has not
answered him.  One more night
she has soothed him to sleep.
She sits in the chilly tent, looking out
at the sky, wondering — like
her child — if the planes
are coming again with their deadly cargo.