If Only

By Terry Petersen

If peace were a bird, it would fly through heat or wind.
It would thrive in a nest open to storm.

If peace were a mountain,
it would stand patient,
constant, firm for centuries.

If peace were a tree, it would begin
as an acorn, unafraid of darkness,

then grow to house birds,
and reach for mountains.

Peace. It transcends
mountain borders,
and allows foreign bird species
to nest together

despite unseen possibilities.