Day 1,048

Gaza City

A summer’s day. A café by the sea.
People coming to talk,
eat, tell a few stories, catch up
with others they haven’t seen.
Suddenly an explosion. Suddenly
an impact so strong that bodies
are hurled up into the air,
even into the water. When it’s over,
seventeen are dead. Women,
men, children. Students
who had been reading, writing.
Teachers who had been planning
their lessons. Mothers
who’d brought their small children
for a sugary treat,
to distract them
from everything else
the occupier had taken from them.