One night light on QRF
We’d been out all day, I felt like death
Ranger Corey was our TC
And dammit if I didn’t have to pee
Oh and with the humvee speakers he’s blaring Travis Tritt
Or some other boring old country music twit
See ole Corey had an anti-smoking passion
And he was keeping me smoke free in our war wagon
My eyes tired from scanning the gun camera screen
Constantly monitoring the never changing battle scene
Blinking like I am about to lose consciousness
How I was staying awake was anyone’s guess
Silently I curse all the deities
Covering my bases ’til I find out who did this to me
For hours in dark and endless heat
Not screaming in frustration a major feat.
Caught in my reverie
I wander how can this be
What did I do to deserve this
What in god’s name caused me to enlist
Suddenly I had thought that I never put in my head
An intriguing life changing voice spoke, here is what it said
“I am here.”
The thought echoed in my ears
Smiling, now, I lose all frustration
With an almost miraculous transformation
I have no more pressure, pain, anger, and agitation
I listen to everybody chatter
I realize the appearance of pain never matters
Because underneath all is a layer of joy
Pain and tribulations are but an illusory ploy
Distractions of the Samsara
Are meant distract and impair a
Souls ability to see
That which truly be
I didn’t catch why
Maybe I’ll learn after I die
The point that I learned
As a soul badge I earned
Is that even though it is far from swell
War itself is actually far from hell
It’s just a perfect storm
Like when cold air meets warm
And all involved are human girls and boys
Who all feel pains, frustrations, happiness, and joys
War, I learned, is just one more human condition
It’s not bad or good, it’s just two sides jockeying for position
And while we all feel horrible at times
Our enemies are just people no matter their perceived crimes
Enemies vary it seems
Usually it is just what we call the other team
But, as humans, underneath it we are all the same
Usually seeking simply comfort and joy as the goal to our games
Hajji makes bombs
We defuse them all night long
At the same time kids laugh and joke
We rush around looking for fires under the smoke
This madness gives us all a purpose
Even if we are here to only protect each of us
Tags: Stephen Handlin