Obit


I sit in the kitchen reading obituaries 
five unknown Fort Riley soldiers, 
they died in Iraq, a footnote details
military service and their ultimate sacrifice
in the name of a red-white-blue country.

They are all so young, and it’s hard to imagine
that their whole lives can be compressed 
into a few cold lines, or that the bright colors 
have drained away leaving only black and white
to be buried in uncounted pages 
of the morning Capital Journal.





the wall


the old veteran 
stares across the concrete
a wall is erected there
names from another day
       another war
sweep into his mind 
and for a moment
yesterday becomes clear

beneath the mask of anguish 
he's worn all these years
the memories of grief 
           of bitter pain
distant battles fought
some won, some lost
open moments
fresh flower petals
left on a grave

the hurt is too deep
to share
his thoughts
turn into mist-filled eyes 
for those who never returned 
the young, the brave, the fair
all gone in the scrawled etches
their names, now lines
cut in cold stone
and memories tucked
safely away