Bridge Over Troubled Waters
There isn’t any aftermath
the next day after a battle.
We walk a straight and narrow path;
we don’t shiver–bones don’t rattle.
We display a calm demeanor.
Has this war made our hearts cleaner?
No! War is like a TV show
telling us things we didn’t know.
We don’t expect any nightmares.
We killed some people–but who cares?
We do remember the surprise
we saw in dying people’s eyes.
The captain said, “Go and get drunk.”
but something within us has shrunk.

Walt Abbott–2-19-2009