A Soldier in Peacetime

by Columbine

Slow sticky ease makes me nervous
The dress collar stifles and scratches
Truffles and cheesecake too rich for my stomach
And music without any drums
Now and then I get up before sunrise
Just because I know I can do it
And hang around bored in the kitchen
Making half-hearted jokes with the cook
It's not for the smoke of the fireplace
That's not even a little like gunfire
The smell of meat cooking a challenge
I'm thinking of supper, just supper
Polish my boots and my buttons
Tell stories of monsters to children
The children like stories of monsters
And who better to tell them than me?

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