What should you do when you hear
a knock on the door in the middle
of the night? Quietly slip
out the back, climb the fence
and hide in the neighbour’s yard.
When the authorities search,
they’ll decide they’ve missed you.
If you hear a noise out the back,
turn off the lights and take cover
in a cupboard or another bolthole.
After a cursory search
they may conclude you’re gone
and round up the neighbours instead.
If living in an apartment block,
place heavy furniture against the entry,
make it hard for them to come in.
Never answer the bang on the door
in the middle of the night, though
you’ve never done anything wrong,
know years in the gulag await,
know they never admit their mistakes,
hide or flee, don’t make it easy,
know they’ve come for you.

Rohan Buettel lives in Canberra, Australia. His haiku appear in various Australian and international journals (including Presence, Cattails and The Heron’s Nest). His longer poetry appears in many journals, including Rattle, The Goodlife Review, Meanjin, Meniscus and Quadrant.