Off To War

Steve Dunne
Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
edited May 2011 in Poetry, Prose, Music & Art
Looking in those courageous eyes
They've seen so many places
Shaking your hand and wishing you luck
Praying for your family's sake
It's not the last time

Watching you reach for your wife's grasp
She's sad, proud, scared
A home she's made with you
Will you come back to finish this life?
So many words unsaid
Yet all that comes to mind is 'I love you'

Your children, three young children
Climbing, clawing on your legs
Crying, screaming, at your feet
Trying to make you stay
At home this would work
You'd wipe their tears
Yet today you turn and walk away
They don't understand

Marching toward your destination
You leave behind many people
Who will make sacrifices
To overcompensate for your absence
To try and fill the shoes you leave behind
For your wife and children
This battle is now not just your own

So as you strap on those boots
And march toward your own sacrifice
Leave this life behind
It will be here waiting for you

Godspeed
I love to turn you on
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments

  • Linda
    Linda Posts: 1,656
    steve, i have to say, i am impressed.....
    i'm not happy yet.....
  • chadwick
    chadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    Yes Linda this is a damn fine piece of writing.
    Thank you for sharing this with everyone.
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."
    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    thanks chad and linda. :)
    I love to turn you on
  • deadnote
    deadnote Posts: 1,678
    if i could be free i wouldve attempted to kiss your hand at least twice
    set your laughter free

    dreamer in my dream

    we got the guns

    i love you,but im..............callin out.........callin out
  • eulusso
    eulusso Posts: 50
    the soldier came and
    he looked straight forward with his
    blind faith, blinded eyes

    Eulusso
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    Well it's been one month down
    five more remain
    adjusting over the holidays
    has been a bit of a strain

    Your children pretend to be strong
    yet I've wiped their tears
    'I miss my daddy'
    Trying to quell their fears

    They see your picture
    They hear your voice
    One month down
    It's still not their choice

    So do your job well
    It's the only way
    It's your turn to stand watch
    And keep their fears at bay
    I love to turn you on
  • chadwick
    chadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    Steve Dunne wrote:
    Well it's been one month down
    five more remain
    adjusting over the holidays
    has been a bit of a strain

    Your children pretend to be strong
    yet I've wiped their tears
    'I miss my daddy'
    Trying to quell their fears

    They see your picture
    They hear your voice
    One month down
    It's still not their choice

    So do your job well
    It's the only way
    It's your turn to stand watch
    And keep their fears at bay

    um, (pause)
    that's deeply moving.
    sad..
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."
    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • #X.
    #X. Posts: 142
    Your writing's are haunted and sad.
    It would be nice, if you could get this poem out
    there (where more people can read it). It's a way to broaden each other's perspective.
    #X.
    "The Poet is a madman lost in adventure."
    -Paul Verlaine-

    "With me poetry has not been a purpose, but a passion."
    -Edgar Poe-
  • cat72
    cat72 Oxford, MA Posts: 2,993
    steve.....that was just incredible.
  • deadnote
    deadnote Posts: 1,678
    inspiring to someone inside of me
    probably im singular for now
    set your laughter free

    dreamer in my dream

    we got the guns

    i love you,but im..............callin out.........callin out
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    hello my brave old friend
    again, hoping you are well
    heard your voice yesterday
    until the time was cut short
    damn military phones

    your dad and i stopped into a bar
    and took with us your little boy
    we ordered drinks in your honor
    passing the time, putting in time
    making the best of it, the most of it

    your wife she is holding it together
    with exercise, pills, and hope
    her joy is in her children's eyes
    her love is beyond her reach
    yet her face is showing the cracks

    your children still cry at night
    they still don't understand
    yet now they lie with your wife
    she's used to wiping their tears
    they huddle together for one
    they cuddle together as one
    trying with all their might
    to get to that halfway point
    I love to turn you on
  • Buru
    Buru Posts: 8,473
    Quite haunting.
    Puts you in a place where you can really imagine the ordeal of waiting, of those left behind.
    y la banda de Guille... cuando toca?
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    Hello again old salt
    Trusting you are well
    Although I know you are not
    Passing the time with duty and boredom
    How can the two be related?

    We're getting to that place
    Of anticipation and the pangs of waiting
    Are just around the corner
    We're over the hump now
    But there is still a ways to go

    That family of your survives in your absence
    The vacuum, the void, always there
    Surreal for so long
    It's almost like not living
    When you return, they awaken, but for how long?

    There's not much more to be said now
    Those children still cling to anything
    Anything resembling the attention you give them
    The love you give them

    You love your country but are away from it
    You love your family but are away from it
    There are others that can fill your shoes in both capacities
    Yet you choose to remain on duty
    Is this service and bravery selfish?
    It may never be answered
    The conflict inside eats us all

    Hang in there
    I love to turn you on
  • Linda
    Linda Posts: 1,656
    steve, what can i say? :o
    i'm not happy yet.....
  • chadwick
    chadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    eyes.
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."
    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • chadwick
    chadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    you made me cry...
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."
    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    thanks linda and chad. this is all too real. especially today.

    cheers...onward and forward...:)
    I love to turn you on
  • chadwick
    chadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    Steve Dunne wrote:
    thanks linda and chad. this is all too real. especially today.

    cheers...onward and forward...:)


    you made me cry fucker..
    in my best witchy girl voice "i'll get you my pretty".

    dude, your life is not a poem so how do i say this?
    this living-breathing-crying-bleeding-loving-poemlife you live-wrote
    is amazing.
    poem isn't even the correct word to be used here as it is not strong enough
    to support what i am trying to say to you.
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."
    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • depopulationINC
    depopulationINC Posts: 2,074
    wow
    The only thing I enjoy is having no feelings....being numb rocks!

    And I won't make the same mistakes
    (Because I know)
    Because I know how much time that wastes
    (And function)
    Function is the key
  • Steve Dunne
    Steve Dunne Posts: 4,965
    Hello there again...

    Haven't heard from you in a while
    Yet I hear you are struggling
    With the scenery around you
    'Why do you have to stand post'
    'At this post'
    'There's nothing there!'
    Those are your questions
    And day after day the view's the same

    Depressed, conflicted, tired, and worn
    Such is this life's chapter
    Set out to keep the world safe
    For the kids, for yourself
    Yet a shell of a man remains
    And from here on out
    The days will only get longer

    It would take a war, sad to say
    To make the time go by quicker
    A war with objectives
    With measured battles and gains
    Something other than this daily grind

    That said, there is a light ahead
    And in looking into this light
    There's much more than illumination
    There is a tightening of the chest
    A shortness of breath
    An anxiety that stretches the days into weeks
    The hours into days, the seconds into eternity
    It is off in the distance
    And to whisper it's name
    Will inflict further pain upon yourself

    Your family, yes your family
    They have still the schedules, events, dinner, laundry
    Those chapters you miss so much
    Yet your wife's chest has begun to tighten
    Her eyes are starting to open
    Her soul is awakening
    From a long, cold slumber
    She can't wait to be human again

    Your kids 'clock-watch' the calendar
    They have made such strides
    They are kids
    Kids are resilient
    Five months you've missed so far
    They have been ready to hug you for so long now
    For too long now
    You owe them so much
    What do they owe you?

    A new, measured war within is underway
    Time is now the enemy
    This is when the agony sets in
    With a whisper, the chest tightens
    Let the countdown begin...
    I love to turn you on

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