Inside The Wire

[davidwayne]

White flares sizzle in a monsoon rain

and cast their glow on elephant grass

out beyond our Claymores

and the concertina wire.



Camelot streets have been forgotten

replaced with mud

and sandbag castles

where sleep becomes the only grail.



Our courage masks its face,

it's actually fear in motion.

I keep mine close to the skin

laced up tight in leather armor.





Tonight I'll dream

of blue eyes, dry socks, bagels

and breakfast conversations

spilled out over round tables.



Maybe tomorrow will bring a new King

who'll shove the sword

back into the stone

and put an end to the crusades



but tonight I'll sleep

with my boots on

beneath a phosphorous moon

inside the wire.

[Brigid Briton]

Hi David,

This is a well-crafted and effective poem. It's lovely and sad and hopeful and real. Dreaming of bagels while surrounded by chaos pretty much sums up the incongruity of human beings engaged in war. The mind reduces the overwhelming question of "why?" down to a few basic desires, memories of normalcy and connections to those we love.

This is a great poem.

Welcome to the forum!

Brigid

[davidwayne]

Thanks for the reply Brigid
very much appreciated

David