The morning sun hits the window pane
Where Sarah used to sit
Her notebook's still on the desk
With her name spelled neat on it
The teacher called the roll today
And stopped at letter"S"
The silence where her voice should be
Lies heavy on my chest
Why do the big folks make the bombs
That fall upon our town
Why do they take the playground swings
And turn our desks facedown
We were only learning fractions
We were only learning to play
Now half my class is underneath
The mud where wildflowers lay
Jamal could run the fastest
In Friday's football game
Yasmin braided everyone's hair
And never took the blame
Yesterday they breathed the air
And laughed along with me
Today their mothers hold their shoes
And stare at what can't be
Why do the big folks make the bombs
That fall upon our town
Why do they take the playground swings
And turn our desks facedown
We were only learning fractions
We were only learning to pray
Now half my class is underneath
The mud where wildflowers lay
In assembly hall the photographs
Still hang upon the wall
One hundred sixty-five small smiles
That won't grow up at all
Some General in a far-off room
Said"collateral"
But collateral's my best friend's name
And"peace"means nothing at all
Mama says the men in suits
Have reasons we don't know
Something about oil and pride
And enemies and foes
But I'm just seven I don't know
What grown-up wars are for
I only know my desk feels big
With no one here next door
Why do the big folks make the bombs
That tore our school apart
Why do they steal our laughter
And leave the broken hearts
We were only learning to live
We were only learning to be
Now half my class is underneath
The ground and I can't see
Why they can't just let us be
The janitor swept the glass today
He left one braid behind
A little ribbon yellow
In the silence left behind
