Not So Long Ago

Woke one bright morning, not so long ago;

Heard the sound of shooting out on the street below.

Went to the window and saw the barricade

Of paving stones the working people made,

Not so long ago.

Met a man that morning, not so long ago;

Handed me a leaflet on the street below.

Lean and hard-faced working man with a close-cropped head,

Held me for a moment, eye to eye, then said,

"Read it. Read it. Read it and learn

What it is we fight for, why the churches burn."

Out on the Ramblas, she passed me on her way,

Weapon cradled in her arms: it was but yesterday.

"Not just for wages now, not alone for bread;

We're fighting for a whole new world,

A whole new world," she said.