THE DAY AFTER VETERANS' DAY

There was no parade yesterday
No celebration here, in any way
that I could see.

I'm always haunted
by the ones who are gone,
who have left me.

I drove home in a
driving rain
and a brisk, fall wind

with the leaves flying
the temperatures
dipping down again.

Through my flooded windshield
I saw the two flags,
dripping

and

flapping from their pole
ropes twisting
material whipping

and I thought about

rain falling over Saigon
wind whipping through
the desert near Baghdad

flags flying over
Berlin and Dresden
London
and Jalalabad

DaNang and Hue
Bejing and Seoul
as two soggy flags
flapped on their pole.....

I hope today
that the flags have all dried
and that in yesterday's rain

no soldier has died.

Awarded: November 17, 2006

Awarded: November 12, 2006

©Copyright November 12, 2006 by Christina