CALM BEFORE THE STORM            © 1997   by    Myron Schreck

What a peaceful, warm and sunny day
The picnic table’s set  ―   The children all at play
They can’t feel the ozone in the air     
They can’t see the clouds    ―    Gathering way out there
They can’t feel the deadening of the wind    
Or see the frightened birds    ―     flying towards the sun     
This is the calm before the storm
This is the calm before the storm

Friends and family gather in the yard
They have so much to say – their voices filled with cheer
They can’t see the storm that’s on its way     
The darkness up ahead     ―   The sorrow and the pain
They can’t feel the silence in the trees,  
The absence of a breeze   ―    The change that has to come
This is the calm before the storm
This is the calm before the storm

It won’t matter when the twister hits
If you’re good or bad — If you’re poor or rich
Everybody’s life hangs by a thread              
Some will lose their jobs   ―    Some will lose their health
Just rejoice in what you have right now    ―   
A family filled with love    ―    A home that’s safe and warm
This is the calm before the storm
This is the calm before the storm

Soldiers waiting anxiously at base
Before they go to fight – They rest for one last night
Telling jokes and laughing at their lies
Everybody’s brave    ―     No one’s gonna die
They don’t smell the fire in the hills
Or hear the cannons roar   ―   Or see the blood that spills
This is the calm before the storm
This is the calm before the storm

What a peaceful warm and sunny day
The picnic still goes on    ―    The children still at play
While the young ones dance, and old ones sing
Who cares about the clouds   ―   Or what tonight might bring
Cherish all your blessings ’til they end   ―   
For they will surely end    ―    And might not come again
This is the calm before the storm
This is the calm before the storm