Scenes From a Sealed Room (Lenny Solomon)
Voice Over Harley Braidman

It’s seven o’clock in the evening, and everything is well.
It’s been dark about two hours, all is quiet in Israel.
Streets are empty, the houses full, the busineses shut down.
Tension thick, Patience thin, frustration does abound.

Air raid sirens wail, screams penetrate the air,
Children stop what they’re doing, Adults up from their chairs.
It’s time to enter that room, seal off the door
Masks go on, tape goes up, wet rags on the floor.

It’s been so long since we’ve been threatened,
Been so long since we’ve been afraid,
Unsure of what will be tomorrow, Unsure of what lies ahead.

In every house, families, huddled in one room
Sealed shut, gas masks on, hidden faces of gloom,
Listening to the radio, waiting for the all clear,
Hoping there’s no casualties, longing to end the fear,

Each missile fired, anger grows, tired of this scene,
But you must take it seriously, life depends on this routine.
Nachman Shai comes on the air, voice strong and direct,
Don’t leave the house, the masks stay on, we’re not safe as of yet,

It’s been so long since we’ve been threatened,
Been so long since we’ve been afraid,
Unsure of what will be tomorrow, Unsure of what lies ahead.

All is clear in Israel at least for the time being,
But you can’t go back to normal life, just live it in between.
Be ready, be prepared, be waiting for the word,
We’ve worked so hard, the land is ours, leaving would be absurd,

Jeremiah Fifty One, a prophecy that now may fit,
Cab drivers quote with confidence, Isaiah twenty six,
The question of what’s next, what will follow here,
No one knows but we all hope, the time is growing near.

It’s been so long since we’ve been threatened,
Been so long since we’ve been afraid, We hope that what will be tomorrow,
Is that Redemption lies ahead.

This Song was written after spending a week in Israel from Jan 21-31,1991 and listening to Israelis and feeling the mood during six air raid alerts.