Fortunes Of War

Rosebuds scattered across the lawn like the squares at Waterloo With bayonets of thorns repelling small children in search of lost tennis balls Imaginary cannonballs that were fired at the legs of galloping cavalry Resting their dreams in the shade of the apple trees Toy soldiers drunk on warm lemonade And the children dream of glory and Fortunes of War Safe in bed with stories of Fortunes of War, Fortunes of War As the sun sets low on these playing fields An army returns bearing swords and shields Dustbin lids and raspberry canes they'll live to fight another day For warriors medals, milk bottle tops Battle flags fashioned from mother's old table cloths Bright colours run in the summer rain Sometimes when they fall they will pretend that their hankie is a bandage to stop the bleeding And imagine city streets and desert storms and foreign fields There's bullets flying, these are the Fortunes of War