07.05.09
PTSD
As the fireworks neared their end tonight
All that I could think about was
What of the soldiers
Who’ve come back from war
And the sounds still remind them
Of a time they’d forget – if they could?
What of them?
And the consideration
We might may
For a single night of ‘fun’?
A celebration reenacting
All that freedom makes us lose,
And the freedom they must lose
For us all
Every time the rockets burst
Above our heads.
The shrill, chaotic clamor
That deafens all who hear it
(Which stops your heart and fills your chest)
Echoes distant cannon song
And the rattling, endless popping
Of guns without the cover of light
(For better aim, for better vision).
It just reminds them again.
And it all becomes clear, and vivid, and real,
The repetition – driving them closer
To reliving, and re-feeling
Those four days without sleep
Ears sore from the straining
From the listening, always listening
To make sure their enemy
Isn’t gaining, isn’t closer.
Might as well take them back to those
Four years without rest.
Chronic headaches, edgy dreams
(If they can even sleep at all)
And we remind them every year
As we honor all they’ve sacrificed
Unmercifully, and thoughtlessly
Pushing them still nearer, nearer to the past.
There never was a Fourth of July firework
That was ever worth the pain – this pointless wounding
Of the men we call our Best.
***I’m still not quite satisfied with this, but I didn’t want to leave posting this poem too long after the 4th. I hope it conveys properly what went through my mind last night.***
Mademoiselle Gramophone said,
July 5, 2009 at 6:00 pm
I love it.
thesleepingtypewriter said,
July 5, 2009 at 6:03 pm
Thank you.
freshtodeath said,
July 18, 2009 at 4:32 pm
It definitely presents a very strong message. A message that everyone overlooks, if not just the general population, with complete ignorance. I have never really thought of the celebrations in this way, but I think you present an evermore important issue that need to be addressed.
thesleepingtypewriter said,
July 21, 2009 at 12:39 pm
It never went through my mind before either, until that night when I was right next to the fireworks (only a block from where they were shooting them off.) I remember reading something kind of like this in a book, where this guy had come back from war, but every time he heard the sounds of fireworks it sent him spinning back onto the battlefield in the worst possible of ways.
Anyway, I’m glad you commented Fresh, it’s always good to hear from you.
FReSh said,
July 21, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Likewise! It is a completely legit argument and much more. People are too concerned about themselves, although that is a big generalization.