Armistice Sonnets

THIS IS A MEDITATION ON CEASEFIRES. 2018 marked 100 years since the signing of the Armistice of 11 November 1918, the truce that ended the fighting of the First World War. That's something worth commemorating, isn't it? It's appropriate to remember such a sobering period in history and to honor those who sacrificed—including especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice—for the cause of peace. And yet. The terms imposed by the Armistice (and related agreements), in hindsight, seem to have made inevitable the eruption of the Second World War. In short, the "War to End All Wars" wasn't. Ceasefire? Yes. Lasting peace? No—and still no. The Columbine High School shooting of 1999, which occurred during my own final year of high school, was the first time the words "school" and "shooting" were joined in my mind. And now, 20 years later, in the wake of scores of similar events, recently in Parkland, FL and Santa Fe, TX, the phrase is as commonplace as "school lunch." What is peace, real