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K E Cummins Mar 2022
History carves my sinews and hews my spine.
My menhir-body, my storybook of rock,
Speaks of the long fight. See my shoulders
And their scars, their battered stone edges;
They are sturdy footing on which to stand.
A fire-heart warms my earthen hands:
Saplings grow in the loam, seedlings sprout.
Magma-veined, spitting lava, I still rise
And will not fall. Heed my fury,
For I am one small mountain in a range
Stretching from the present to eras past.
Battles come and go; we remain.
Forests on our flanks, bears in our palms,
We will always be wild.
Ellis Reyes Feb 2020
The metal floor is slicky
Desert heat amplifies
The odor of ***** and blood
Mostly empty IV bags hang on their stands
Packaging from numerous medical supplies
Litter the ground

Quickly and carefully I clean and spray and sweep and scrub
I sort and pack and refit and reorganize
Preparing the chopper for the next call

Lives were saved
But
I don’t know what will become of them
Some will leave the Army
Some will come back here
Some will do the job the enemy couldn’t do
And take their own lives

I can’t think about that
This is hard enough
Another day in the life of my roommate, a combat medic.
Ellis Reyes Feb 2020
I can’t feel my legs
Stay with us, Buddy
The chopper’s inbound
I need some O-Positive

Stay with us, Buddy
Apply direct pressure
I need some O-Positive
Put that one over here

Apply direct pressure
I’ve lost the pulse
Put that one over here
Where’s the Chaplain?

I’ve lost the pulse
The chopper’s inbound
Where’s the Chaplain
I can’t feel my legs
18 Delta is the military occupational specialty designation for Special Forces medics.

This is the second in a series of Pantoums
Dream Fisher Nov 2019
I'm sick of you, you shackle me
Metal teeth that lock still laughing
But don't break, it's unsafe, you see
Have to take this thing to hell and back,
Its dangerous, they do insist.
I'm chained to you like a sick Saw game
With a rusty blade, I cut right through.
Only to still have you glued.
Right here.

When your limbs did break,
I would push them back if still attached
That double latch that wouldn't clasp,
My fingers couldn't bend like that.
Call some help, a medic stat!
Forceps push into a snap.

Now that I have you mine again,
I want to rip you right off and then
Show them I can live without your chains
Tell them I could find a better way.
I'll show you just to leave you in this grave I made.
You aren't my demon but I still want you slain.
Haylin Jun 2019
We come before you Almighty God,
Policeman, Fireman, and EMT
to say a prayer before we go
Our ways to each his own Duty

Together now we've come to pray
In case we forget to
During our busy day

The Policeman steps forth,
“Dear God above
Keep us save
and also those we love.

We pray for your unending favor
that we never need use
the rounds we chamber

Our Vests that we wear
for our own protection
please keep 'em bulletproof
and our safety never question”

The Fireman steps up and then takes a knee
“Dear God above I need you now
I know you're always watching me

In the Fires of our Hell
or on the highway to there
Please keep us from hurt
and not singe a single hair

Give us the strength to lift a wall
or tenderness to pick up a tiny child
give us peace when others are losing it
and peace if the scene starts getting wild”

The EMT takes his stand
“God I guess it's my turn
Not really safety out there
or the protection from a burn

But rather Lord I need your help
let me make the right decision
on every patient that I care for
Their lives in my hands I've been given”

Then all Three stand together
with their heads, all bowed low
Dear God above, to all of us
please your mercy would you endow

Keep us safe and bring us home
to our wives and our children
And each time the truck roles out
let it come back safely to it's building
It seems like yesterday except, it is today.
A voice” Level one trauma, 10 patients.”
The smell of dust, exhaust and sweat,
   excitement and fear, controlled chaos,
   medics, mangled men, women, the innocent.
Arrive broken, mended, gone, arrive again.
   an inexhaustible stream; blood out, blood in.
Shredded uniforms, soiled bandages, a lost crucifix,
   syringes, a family photo, severed legs, and arms,
   plastic tubing, piled up, collected, discarded, burned.
Some familiar faces, mostly nameless faces,
   friends and enemies, loved ones and strangers,
   cities, towns, suburbs, villages, tent, and field.
Sadness and anger, pride and confidence,
   hopes and dreams, illusions and truth.
Beginning and ending, never ceasing.
I will rest soon, but not too soon.
   heading for my final rest,
   one day.
Desire Jan 2019
I was a minor who grew up as part of the majority of minorities. Then I embraced a misfit lifestyle, believing Christ, the Messiah, holds all authority. I became a Marine and a married man receiving  more responsibility.  I'm becoming a medic, treating trauma and those who's lives need monitoring.  In the midst of it all, my entire life has been molded by this common theme: ministry.

Not the religious type, but the genuinely authentic, legitimate kind; full of humble and authentic servants and leaders through community;  Imperfect people pursuing positive change and holiness; its more than self-prosperity.  I call this community of people, Church, and these members I call my family.

My life ain't perfect, but its been a blessing to live life despite dark days, receiving unearned and undeserving forgiveness, mercy, and grace. My hope can't be "proven" real or fake, its why its called faith. So  may those who obey  through faith bring  peace, placing  hope on display. I am nothing without God.  My  love  for you comes from Love He sacrificially gave.  My heart, mind, and soul are transformed and influenced by His perfect ways. May the One whose might cannot be matched receive glory and praise, for His ways have given me, a newly-shaped life, that is, the least to say... Im ever thankful.  Amen [YAWEH]!

This is me. The  medic-in-the-making, former Marine, Messiah's misfit from the mass of minorities - ministry molding my life, even in the midst of where I'm moved to next. I  just want to obey, do, and be better for me, you, and future generations.  There's really no harm in this. You could disarm the hostile hits. There's good news (the gospel message) and my past, present, and future are moved by it! Be blessed!
[MAKE YOUR MOVES]

9 Jan 19
0103hrs
XLIV. New Year Reflection and Resolution [Testimony]
Elizabeth Jan 2016
Sirens signal my coming
with chirps and wails,
Primary lights flashing
to alert them to my presence.

My purpose pumps from a well
that is endlessly deep --
so deep, in fact, that
many shallow people have drowned here.

I don't falter, I don't pause,
I act with precision and skill
to give my charge his best chance
at seeing tomorrow.

Gloriously efficient,
Confidence and purpose
radiate from me
as my insides quiver with fear.
Noor May 2014
He was alone
Far from home
Isolated by bullets
As he bled on sand and stone

The explosion triggering the attack
Crushed the vertebrae in a brother's back
A bullet tore through another's arm
The wound left a prominent scar

Through the radio chatter the lone voice of the isolated soldier:
"I've been shot...and it's bad."

Upon reaching the fallen, the medic knew from ****** experience
That his friend was a living corpse, dying is a process
And though the medic prayed he was wrong
He wasn't

Next week, next firefight
Their blood paid for our blood
Pray it meant something in the end

— The End —