The hands remember what the mind evades:
death's quiet chill creeping from toes toward heart
the crepitation of pneumothorax
skin become pebbly where blasted with shrapnel
the tentative fluttering of terminal shock
The nightmares remember what the hands forget:
blowflies feasting on clotted bandages
the pounding of Hueys counting cadence for pulses
boots sliding and sticking in gore on the floor
the stormy tint of blasted bone
ranks of IV bottles clinking in chorus--
temple bells of mindfulness standing as sentinels
vigilant against the next crimson monsoon
The soul remembers what the heart disavows:
being mortally wounded by each soldier who died.
©1995 by Dusty
First appeared in INCOMING!, Vol. I, Issue 2, Island Poets
1995.
Ed. Barbara Menghini Whitmarsh.
Return to Dusty's Poetry Index.
Return to Dusty's Home Page
My Vietnam Related Websites:
Women
in Vietnam ~ Not only nurses served . . .
Dusty's
Home Page ~ Poetry and prose by a woman who was a nurse in Vietnam
Emily's
Poetry ~ By a Red Cross Donut Dolly
Battle
Dressing ~ The Journey of a Nurse in Vietnam
Tim O'Brien's Home Page ~ National Book Award Winner
and Americal Vet
Shrapnel
in the Heart ~ The most moving book you will read on Vietnam
The
Irish on the Wall ~ An effort to locate the Irish who died in Vietnam
Project
Hearts and Minds ~ Help put Viet Nam back together
All
About Vietnam ~ An annotated bibliography of books about Vietnam for
sale thru Amazon Worldwide!
Photos
from a Holts' Military History Tour ~ My trip to Vietnam, February 1998
Illinois
Vietnam Women's Memorial ~ Honoring all the Illinois women who served
My Other Websites:
Chicago Theatre Z - A ~ This is the best theater town
in the country!
Writers Theatre of Chicago ~ And this is the best
theater in town
Literature of the Korean War ~ Don't let the
literature be forgotten
Poetry of the First World War ~ Owen, Hardy and others
Samuel Pepys ~ One of my favorite authors
Gil Thorp ~ THE Coach
Maybe Later . . . ~ My
Creative Nonfiction
Chi-COW-go ~ Cowz plus
Commentary (this used to be a cow town)
Graham Fulton, Scottish Poet ~
Charles Manson Auditions for the Monkees
Soccer Literature ~ I'm a fan and I read
O'Leary
Lantern ~ Fire! Fire! Fire!
Other Important Websites:
PreviewPort.com
~ Connecting Authors and Writers Worldwide
Remember
Oklahoma City ~ Civil Service and Military Employees will never forget
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