A courtyard of dreams
Alive with entwined honeysuckle vines
and ancient roses
Musical sounds of small bright blue birds
and busy buzzing honeybees
Dancing and twirling, bold beautiful butterflies

They come to visit
They come to play
My fragrant garden of peace
Sunlit or Moonlit
A place to read
A place to paint
A place to ponder
A place for solace
A place to be

The darkness came swift
Carried on loud grey heavy winds of booming bomb blasts
From beyond the garden walls
Scorched earth and burning trees
Invaded and infected all that was
Broken butterfly bodies and wings littered the cobblestone
Vines burned and fell
Crushed by crumbling walls
All became silent
All became dark
For hours, for days, for an eternity.

And then,
Something small moving in tiny ways
Hidden behind the mangled dry brush
A sparkle
A tiny twinkle
Perhaps a flame?
A hint and whisper of gossamer wings
A firefly
A source of light in the depths of darkness
A reason to smile
A reason to believe
A reason to be.