'Rotc' poems - Hello Poetry

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Nemo Sep 2014

My Two Cents

My 2 Cents

“the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.”

Let me start by mentioning that I don’t usually get involved with political matters, but in this case, I’d say it’s more of a basic human rights matter.

I’m a man, and I’m a feminist.

I was lucky enough to grow up in a home with three women; my mother and two older sisters. Growing up with them gave me an enormous amount of respect for women, (even though I may have lost a certain amount of socially expected masculinity along the way), and their current lives continue to increase my respect for the opposite gender.

My oldest sister is leaving to study abroad at Oxford in less than a week to major in philosophy. Philosophy. She also graduated high school with a 4.0 and was involved in power lifting competitions and is enlisted in ROTC. Simply put, she’s an animal. She’s worked hard her entire life and I’d hate to see a world that put that hard work to waste.

My other sister is working three jobs to pay her way through college and is planning to major in psychology. I’m always envious of her work ethic and level of commitment to not only her education, but to her friends and family as well.

My mother has been my backbone since I was a child. She was always the one I turned to in times of trouble, and continues to be. She works hard everyday, while going through mentally straining marriage problems, and comes home and still asks me about my day. She has given me nothing but unconditional love for my entire existence.

For these reasons, it boggles my mind why anyone would ever be anti-feminism. I am genuinely confused as to why, because their bodies are different, women get less privileges, respect, opportunities, and even money. I just don’t get it.

I am also disgusted that women are seen by most men as walking ****** organs. l will admit genuine guilt to using the number scale to “rate” women. It’s something I grew up with, but now it sickens me. Assigning a number to a woman based on your misguided views on how she should look, whether you would **** her, is something I find repulsive. There’s nothing wrong with admiring the opposite ***, but no one gives a **** about your stupid opinion, especially the woman.

I hope someday if I ever have a daughter that she will have the privilege of living in a country of gender equality, tolerance, and open-mindedness.

Anyway, I just wanted to put my two cents in.

I am a man.

I am a feminist.

Peace.

This isn't a poem but it's something I'm passionate about and feminism could always use more support. Spread the word!

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Nickoli Mar 2017

Speechless

NJROTC is the one thing that made me feel confident in who I was, now it is gone. There will be no ROTC next year, most people don’t care, but the people who worked their butts off are hurting. We work all year round, constantly training and bettering ourselves. The funny thing about all of this is the fact that we all new it was coming, we just didn’t know how soon. People don’t care and I don’t expect them to but I hope people realize that having that program changed the school for the better and the cadets in it.
We weren’t perfect we had our days where we just wanted to give up. We have had rocks thrown at us, yet we stood firm. We have been made fun of and still are but that never once took an ounce of pride from our hearts. I will not be here I graduate in May, so people wonder why I am so upset. I am upset because I have personally worked with every cadet who wanted to be something, I have been there when we won first place titles, I have been there for the most hilarious fails, I have been there for the biggest wins in the smallest ways. Regardless of when or where I have been there! I have seen them at there best and worst, I have given pep talks at meets that have changed the outcome within the blink of an eye. You can’t understand what it is like to be in a program like this if you aren’t in it.
In the eyes of the Juniors everything they have worked for for three years have just been ripped from their hands, they don’t know how to handle something like this, neither do I. ROTC made these kids who they are, it has shaped me into the strong, confident and intelligent woman I am. How do I look them straight into the eyes and tell them it is gonna be okay when I myself don’t even believe that? I will walk out of high school with only one regret, that I didn’t prepare them properly for this hit. I have lead and prepared them for everything but this, could it be true? Is this it? It is………..

#broken #taken #rotc

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David Ehrgott Jul 2016

Programmable Interrupt

" The only thing that pleasures us
is killing babies with our guns"

These were the words
Sung
By members
of the ROTC
while jogging down union street in hackensack

Seventeen year old children
Being programmed
By our government
to pleasure themselves
by killing babies

Half a million innocent lives
Taken
by baby killers

War is Hell

Here

in hackensack
where the army rotc trains children to pleasure themselves

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Johnny Noiπ Sep 2018

Jasmine's Cross

They smelled of dance &             kissed in a dream on a garden tour,
leaving the scientists' wall & daughters to learn enriching accidents,
so that the words were killed;                            & rally to win or die,
& put it into the park,                 Cross Jasmine breaks from the top,
it is serious, Ben is the Prophet,                            & where the talent
is the science of the angels done it;
The city wherein It is set in bed,
a table, a glass & a stream,
in Latin it is the sea & the magic of the word,
1 table w/ a gun at all times,                        & between the fire knees
Rarwatist in paper Plastic Dream;                       He carried the smell
of the feet of his freedom after embracing them in a dream,
he left the garden of the price of the sciences,
the wall of the daughter of the rich man & learn & clashes
of this songs covering of the walls of the keywords
to have been slain;                 & to rally, to conquer,
He carried the smell of the feet of his freedom
after embracing them
in a dream,                      he left the garden of the price of the sciences,
the wall of the daughter of the rich man
& learn & clashes of this song covering the walls
of the keywords to have been slain;                 & to rally,     to conquer,
& put him into the Park, looking for some of the cross
jasmine far from the shore of Bel's serious,
Ben the prophet, & in the place
where the genius of the knowledge
of the angels,      who has done this in a matter of state,
who is in charge of,
& in the bed, the table, the mirror, the Laurel,
in the Latin sense, as was the sea,
& the magic of a word,        1 have reference
to of which is on the table, firearms,
seen in all my life, & the knee by the fire
in the center of the eye ROTC paper plastic Dream
& put him into the Park,                                looking for some
of the cross jasmine far from the shore be graven the prophet,
& in the place where the genius of the knowledge
of the angels, who has done this in a matter of state,
& who is in charge of,                                      & in the bed w/, the table,
the mirror,
the Laurel,                         in the Latin sense,                    as was the sea,
& the magic of a word,                            1 have reference to
of which is on the table, firearms,
                        seen in all my life,                          & the knee by the fire
           in the center of the eye ROTC paper plastic Dream
He carried the smell of dancing & kissing a dream garden
tour has left scientists wall & daughters of the rich learn
crash cover the walls of the keywords were killed;
& rally to win or die,         & cast him into the Park,
looking for anything from across Jasmine's distance
from the top of Bel that is broken,                                          it is serious,
Ben prophet, & where the genius is the science of angels
who have done this in the city who is set over in bed,
a table, a glass & streamers, in the Latin sense that it was
the sea & the magic of the word,           1 have at the table
w/ a gun at all times,   & in the midst of fire kneel w/ one                eye
                                       ROTC, paper, plastic,          |           |        dream

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Astrid Ember Feb 2015

2.4.15

One of these
days I'll forget
how your name
numbs my tongue.

But not today.
Today your name
is hot poisonous
gas trapped in
my ribcage.
Today you
are steam burning
my throat
screaming
"Oh god!"
"Oh god!"
"Oh god!:
because you
are going to
be my
shadow again.

You are going to
be everywhere
again.

I keep
having these
flashbacks
of when I
was choking
on my words
as you held me
down.
Of when
he held up
the camera
and you bent
me over the
couch and
You both
laughed as
I giggled and
whispered "stop please"
instead of screaming
because my mother
was upstairs.
When me saying
"I'm done. No seriously
stop."
turning into your wicked
grins in your rotc
uniforms
pointing at your badges
"we're higher ranked
than you. You aren't
done yet." and that...
******* camera.

Always threatening
to **** yourself
when I did "wrong".
Always threatening-
Always
threatening me.

I was your puppet
and when
I spoke for myself.
another threat.
I got rid of you.
But you dug a hole
under my skin and
crawled right back in.
Shot me in the head
and like a maggot
crawled into my
Broca's area
controlling what I
said.

It got worse.
You were *******
other girls.
I got rid of
you again.
You acted like
we were wolves.
But I heard they
mate for life.
I heard they're loyal.

You my sweet,
are just a worm.

Saying you love me
promising you love
me.
And then texting another
girl the same thing
as you're whispering it
into my ear.

I pushed.
I pushed.
I pushed.
You were a
concrete wall.
A snapped spinal
cord between a
paralyzed man
and using his legs again.
The emphysema
that keeps a
person from breathing.
You were a disease.

And just like brain cancer
you deteriorated me
and controlled me.

For 2 months
you were everywhere.
For 2 months you
were always the
ghost around the
next corner.
You followed me...
Everywhere.
Showing up outside
my house to walk me
to school.
Showing up outside
my classes to tell me
you loved me and hated
me at the same time.

Every time I pushed,
you threatened.
Always another suicide
attempt as I tried to
get out of the grave
you put me in.
You kept throwing dirt
on me and saying "I can
finally breathe!"

I remember that one day,
your hands were ******.
Glass was everywhere.
Your pocket rattled.
My name engraved on
your thigh.
"Janna this blood
is your fault" as it
ran down your leg.
You stuffed pills
into your mouth,
pushed me away
as I screamed
and clawed at your
throat trying to
get them out.

Next time.
More blood,
less pills,
but you were
dizzy, delirious,
saying you love
me, saying goodbye,
throwing up, saying
goodbye, resisting my help,
your hands looked miles away
which is probably why
for once you didn't touch me.

It's taken me
2 months
to realize the
leaves moving
behind me weren't
you running for me.
2 months to realize
the person behind me
isn't going to capture
me and keep me locked up.

You're back from the
mental asylum.
And just the thought
of your brown eyes
breaks down what ever
recovery I built up.

You are an atomic bomb.
And I'm not sure there's
ever going to be a day
where I don't tremble
at the thought of you.
And if there is, then
it is not today.

Michael. ugh. it's so long,.

#suicide #abuse #im #sorry #**** #oops #mention

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Matt Jun 2016

Long Live The Kurdish People

I dream of traveling
To northern Syria or Iraq

To join the YPG
Or Peshmerga

Peshmerga means
"Ones who confronts death"

To fight bravely
Alongside them
Knowing each day
Could be my last

Although it has been
Many years
Since I have fired
A weapon

(It was in an indoor range
With A Springfield M1903)

I just need some practice

I dream
Of fighting
With the YPG
In their just cause

Their way of life
Being threatened

The U.S. Government
Does not condone
Volunteers
From our military forces
Going to help the Kurds

That's fine
I just have my limited
ROTC training

I could train there

I'm fit
And I'm able bodied

And there I will finally
Be part of a community

The YPJ
Strike fear
Into the hearts
Of Daesh fighters

They fear they will
Go to hell
If they are killed
By the YPJ in battle

The YPG and YPG forces
Are courageous and strong
They fight a war against evil
All year long

You defend your homelands
Kurds of the YPG and YPJ

You did not choose war
It was forced upon you

Long live the YPG and YPJ forces

I pray you will one day live
In peace and security

And although
Many will
Not understand

If I die
At least I die
Fighting with
People I love

For their right
To live peacefully

Can you hear
The Ululation

Do you listen
To the YPJ's cry?

Long live the Kurds
Daesh fighters must die

This is just me fantasizing and dreaming. I do not have the money to go there, or to get back. I would never actually go. I just dream of doing something memorable and participating in a worthwhile cause.

Also what the Kurds need are modern weapons, not volunteers. Daesh has all the modern weapons left over from the conflict in Iraq and many YPG/YPG/Peshmerga forces are outgunned.

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Noah Mar 2014

Mr. West

Believe it or not, I started these thoughts in the shower
And I went right to work, didn’t want it to sour
Thinking about life and such, like one does in the loo
I had this idea in my head that just started to brew

See, when one thinks of a poem, most simply think rhyme
However, most poems don’t rhyme all the time
Some simply rhyme like a hint of lime with your Sprite

Wait, Sprite? That wasn’t close enough
As a matter of fact, it really sounded quite rough
But you see this pattern of rhymes that I have created
Has made you hunger for rhymes and it just can’t be sated
So I will stick to rhymes because I have created a rhythm
And I will try to be as creative as I can with ‘em

Now, how ‘bout I tell you a little about me?
I have a family of five, I’m middle child of three
I play hockey and lacrosse, and I hit off the tee
Always lived in New Hampshire, represent 603

West High is my school, that’s why I’m up here
Competing to be Mr. West for the year
Others are up to show off their skill
But to be honest, I am doing this to test my own will

You see, I have always been the reluctant type
I have never been one to get caught in the hype
In all truth, I believe one of my greatest fears
Is to be judged or ridiculed by all of my peers

So here I stand, in front of all of you
I have broken the veil of doubt, let my colors shine through
But back to the fun, my purpose now clear
For I have shown to you I no longer fear

My mom and I have a nickname for me
The “high school oxymoron” it is, you see
I play some sports, which I told you earlier
I’m 2nd in the class, but I’m no Vernier
I’m also a Catholic kid, praise be to God
As you can see, my experience has become quite broad
And let’s not forget, the band I adore
For without music, life would be a bore

But enough about me, let’s talk about West
Some even call this school the best
I agree with them, this place isn’t bad
Some just talk poorly about it, but I think it’s rad

Some people say, “Well, our sports ****!”
And I agree to a degree, but it’s sort of good luck
Whereas other schools have tryouts, and teams make cuts
Everyone who wants to can play, if they have the guts

And let’s not forget Commander’s cadets
Because the only ROTC program in the city’s at West
Or how about our students blue-and-white armored
Two of the last for tops in the class went to Harvard

We also have musical talent, no one can debate
And it shows with our track record of attending All-State
So I hope that these lines have helped you to see
That West is a perfectly great place to be

Time to wrap this up, however you should know
I really hope you all enjoy this show
And to all the contestants, I wish you the best
As we all compete for the title, Mr. West.

This poem I use as my talent for a male's pageant at my high school called Mr. West. It's a pageant that the senior guys put on and basically make a fool of ourselves doing it.

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wordvango Aug 2015

i AM

not CONTAINED
in COMPLAINTS
or MOURNING for an
ANTIDOTE or new adhd DRUG
THE glue fumes get me through
even though my LEFT NOSTRIL
is always stuffed up,
and my ROTC uniform makes me stand out
so, at RECESS, i SAY, nothing.

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Johnny Noiπ Oct 2018

The ****** **** Box From Kiev

33 minute and 33 minutes; The new flag for the new pope Tryphena.
Surfing, homeless dirt Leaker ||||| Diana Apollo 1, 1, 1, Venice: frog, Rana.
A showcased new project 100 (1500) AD. It is the creed asked to start ...
500 passengers to the BBC. For it is not the cold of the evening,
FOOD Help, experiment, graffiti zucchini; To find a woman who parks
and covets; And in homosexual gay Jesus' bones, Certainly conduct the voice of the insurance Sample since the ROTC is grown up the worst form of the water. Marcius leader scheduled. Sigma Christians wrote to AWR
BrunneBBobby with the "Illinois House" This is the social security of Asia
Teach and write enough time was given to ordinary people NAME ON,
so the show. Secretary general The tail of Aaron, in the night,
Do not find fault with the game. panic FIFA Soccer shooting every day, Oillel. The enemy moved a year. The last month lost! The lion is a lion in refrigerators and from the Greece Hebrew for Toxic windows, Sweden! Lithuanian; The two ladies Find the members of the river dying their Swords. Large balcony guard turtle, If on the day of the earth he wishes to finish it, 10 Asians, Asia, and Ebal, preying on Gregory's New clothes 1 dress all drill! You have to make Westgate.
The design Rwandan - Discussion of deep thinking.
The new machine level Yes "What is this?" Born, from all the other women. consider started Paddy indicates waters. I lived with Abraham Berlin
However, in Germany He loved it so say you love me. During the operation, it is not possible to see the speed. Sheet moves. || 1, New Jersey, New Jersey 1 What? Glimpse articles published in Spain, according to Geo-moon (Geo Meng) "Answers" New Jersey, New Jersey, United States American magazine Malala Silapoil. 100 500 100 100 loading Creation of a new community was born out of the city. I am proud to Blow, ye that bend the bow: coffee bar, herbs No short description translation, please wait ... New bird cake, the new snake; News & RU know 1100 grams of protein, all sisters of Rwsi's husband and I visited the data is available. Will be Apple's lawyers' different languages operating system. There are important examples of success. At present, New Jersey, New Jersey, Little Kiev, | | About this ****** bradyfarcertcc box.|| [****** **** box]

#drd

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Matt May 2015

In Memory of the Victims of The Kent State Massacre (May 4, 1970)

The national guard fired the tear gas
Then followed the students over the hill
Toward the football field
A group of students threw some bricks
The guardsmen threw the bricks back

The guardsmen dropped to their knees
A group of them had a meeting
Officers of the guard give the order to
Return to the staging ground of the ROTC building

One of the guardsmen was hit with in the back of the leg with
A chunk of concrete
As they walked back

Someone said "Fire"
It may have been hold your fire
The guard recalled
After the first shot went off
The other guards began to fire

A guard said he felt as though
He was in jeopardy
As a guy came toward him
And he fired on him

Another guard said during the interview
That he knew it wasn't right

A total of 67 bullets over 13 seconds

One guard member said,
He would have shot too, if he had been with the firing group.
I quote him,
"I hate to see anyone lose their life, I really do
It came to a boiling point where I thought it was going to happen
Justified, I don't know?"

It was not justified.  Their lives were not threatened.  The guardsmen never should have even had the option to use deadly force.

He continued,

"If I was standing up there, I probably would have fired, knowing the others were firing.  If I had a line of sight, and a line of fire, I would have fired.  Just because others were firing, and I don't know how I would have justified that."

People have a right to assemble peacefully.

May the victims rest in peace.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FakLUusNlXc

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Jonathan Moya Nov 2019

Veteran Day

The stars on the flag started falling off
when Private Walker returned home
to Tennessee after six months of being
in country in Afghanistan.

At Camp Leatherneck on the treadmill
he folded five points to pentagrams,
imagined fireworks nova his welcome back.

The flag rarely flapped in the arid silence
of base camp. Was MIA everywhere else.

He landed unmet in
Chattanooga on Veterans Day
in time to catch the parade highlights,
which happened two days earlier,
being ignored on the airport monitors
in the hustle of terminal traffic.

No flags decorated Broad street shops,
no watchers waived the red, white and blue.
Police motorcycles fronted the parade
and patrolled the back in sunglass alert.

Two Vietnam vets shouldering hunting rifles
marched grimly in parade formation followed
by alternating school bands and ROTC cadets.

All two thousand stars dripped down,
faded blue in the rush to show the next ad.
Every which way he looked
the rushing crowd turned his back to him.

He remembered Anousheh, the girl
whose name meant everlasting/immortal.

The child who hugged him,
kissed his forehead when he gave
her a Hershey bar from
his mom’s care package
while patrolling the base perimeter road.

The friend, the daughter, the grandchild
who died in a Taliban wedding bombing,
one week after her seventh birthday,
three days after their embrace.

His heart, his tears, his breath,
his every word was Anousheh.
All was and will be forever Anousheh.

And when he prayed
he prayed like Anousheh,
and on his knees at the airport
he faced her outbound heart
and prayed for a mutilated world.

#veterans #war #day

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Kris Fireheart Feb 2019

Pills

Doctors said,
"Kid, you've got problems.
Not to worry,
We can solve them.
Take this pill twice,
Every morning.
Here's two more for
When you crash. "

I was stupid,
What did I know?
Fresh in high school
Fourteen years old.
Life just seemed to
Pass me by,
Then I took one
And got high.

Freshman year,
In ROTC,
So on point, no one
Could beat me.
Then one day,
They caught my eye;
"You should probably
Meet this guy. "

Fifteen kids stuffed
In a closet,
Huddled around our
Technical sergeant,
In his hands,
Like shining diamonds,
"I've got stuff that you
Should try, man. "

Lortab, norco,
I'd heard stories.
Ritalin just didn't
Do much for me.
Tylenol 4 and xanax bars
Made me picture
Crashing  cars.

Everyone knew that
I had Addy, I drank beer,
And I smoked fatties.
They said,
"What do you want for go-pills?"
I said,
"I'll take ALL of THOSE pills. "

From that day,
My life was over.
Never again would I
Be sober.
Still I pulled through,
In the end,
With some help from
My 'new friends. '

Let's fast forward,
On to college,
Rich kids with their
Parents' wallets.
Track me down with
Midterm chills,
"Hey man, can I maybe
Score some pills? "

Hydrocodone, my
Best friend,
Stays with me until
The end.
Empty bliss that's
Like no other,
Gifted by my
Lovely mother.

Every month, I'd
Throw a party,
Young and stupid,
All invited.
Smoke some ****
And drink and chill,
Waiting for those
Luscious pills.

Talking smack and
Starting drama, waiting
Till we hear my mama,
Twist the **** and
Step inside,
Bongs and blunts were quick
To hide.

I said,  "chill, guys,
She's not stupid.
My mom's cool with how
I do ****;
Sure she likes to take my pills,
Still, she's brought me
All my thrills. "

"Twenty norco, fifteen xanax,
Pill for pill,
Understand that? "
Then she sat,
And smoked our joints,
"Oh my adorable
****** boys! "

Travis said,
"Dude, that's your MOM? "
I said,  "why, man?
Is there a problem? "
He said,  "nah, but ****,
She's cool! "
I said,
"Only since I've been in school. "

This is one about my relationship with pills and how they seem to connect all of ny friends and family together.

#drugs #pills #mom #love #party #poem #memory #true #real

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atlast Dec 2018

to the vietnam vet.

Man

Started as a baby who watched killing on TV.
Whose childhood was Uncle Sam and the ROTC.

Took turns being cowboy and Indian, finger guns
Hunting with dad, rifles and handguns
But nothing could prepare him for the way that blood runs
From the lips of a friend

He left at 18
Couldn’t seem to grow a beard.
Didn’t matter when he was covered in jungle mud from ear to ear.

Kool Aid and biscuits
It sounded like a dream
Living indoors.
Working on machines.

But what the cargo brought back
Demanded to be seen

Bags upon bags hoisted on backs
Swung around like jump ropes
Among the soldier’s jumping jacks

Every beating moment a guilt-filled flashback

The blood from the lips of an enemy or friend
Reddening the mud, trickled to no end
A gun on his side
Who was fighting who?
The roles were unclear
Muddied and hazy, orange and dark blue

No need for TV. The war’s in his mind.
Engraved in his eyelids.
Pace, panic, grind

Is he a man? Can he ever grow old?
If his life is just one story that keeps getting told

Child.

Man.
Nam.

- Vietnam

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Lydia Mar 2018

Untitled

I walked right out the back door as if I knew what I was doing
The whole white dress and heels thing didn't work for me
To the point where I gave up, halfway down the aisle and took my shoes off
I'd have to call that the biggest waste of $150 I can think of
But it made a great photograph

I left glasses all over the house with little chapstick kisses on them
At first, you hated picking them all up so that we would have something to drink out of,
But eventually, you loved the way I sipped each one exactly the same.
Water or tea or champagne, doesn't matter

Wesley was barking in the back yard while you were reading with me
You paused to comment on how silly it was that I named him after a TV show character
I laughed and you reluctantly ceded that it suits him
I never thought reading was a partner activity, but here we were, together

The summer I graduated graduate school, you asked me if it had been worth it
You were ROTC turned mechanic and never really got why I needed to be picked up from the lab six nights a week
But you did it anyway
So probably not
I would have been just fine as an accountant or an insurance seller
I kissed him
"But I wouldn't be nearly this good at chemistry."

When I took you up to Maine for the first time to meet my parents, I don't think you realized how little time I wanted to actually spend with them
Really, I wanted to take you sailing
We road horses with your dad down in Tennessee and I looked like an idiot, so it was only fair
You had your sea legs in a couple of minutes, though, and I had to intentionally capsize us to get your t-shirt wet
The water was too cold for you

You started a garden in the backyard
Granted, it took awhile
You killed everything in it the first three seasons,
But just when you said you didn't care, the strawberries came back
The ones you thought died last summer when you went away on business and I forgot to water them
You let me have the first one that was ripe

We were going to plant a cherry tree
Even though the birds were going to tear through it and make a mess
I was wrong about a lot of things, and I needed you to fix that
So I'm still going to plant that cherry tree
Just one more thing to be wrong about

I thought Christmas lights were kinda silly
We didn't have any kids and it doesn't really get cold here
But you insisted
You put an arch over our driveway and put on silly music
I am so glad that's how you proposed
It wasn't perfect, kind of a mess, actually
But there was no pressure, and you had it figured out

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Gemini Jan 2020

America The Great

Bullets made of lead
Brave soldiers blood keeps getting shed
IEDs and S-vest go off leaving captain America with TBI and shrapnel in his head
America said it’s only my 3rd day out here so why must y’all choose to put me 6 feet deep in my bed
My winter nights supposed to be cold not ******
When I said a vacation far from everyone I didn’t mean in ROTC crawling on the ground getting muddy
And I won’t say names
But this countries deck of cards hasn’t been the same since we added the 45th card and now he keeps receiving the wrong kind of fame
I don’t have a problem with the man it’s more his beliefs choices and antics
Airstrikes on foreign countries now WW3 is trending and everyone’s in a panic
College students scared to file their FAFSA because they’re scared to be drafted
To think I almost brought a child in this world
To think I almost married one of my friends to keep her in her first world of choice and not taken back to her third world
People get married in court rooms then take pictures in front of the courthouse and settle for dutty pigeons flying over head instead of the white doves
No flower girl in sight just kids forced to dress up and smile for their parents wedding picture but it’s the fifth guy they’ve seen their mother with so they’re confused as to what is really love
Most women dreams of an elaborate wedding get shot down and crushed due to the fear of immigration looming
Now men’s dreams of being able to protect and provide for their family get replanned for them by getting shipped to war to prevent nuclear bombs to get to booming
Instead of making peace we’re bombing people
Before getting out of one war we’re deployed to the next
Low morale and fatigue get us captured and tortured now the enemy is recording a video of chopping off our necks
We just sent 700 troops to the Middle East to prepare for a war that’s imminent
If not WW3 scale there’s a war coming
And when it comes I’ll be running
Not towards the bullets but in the opposite direction
Up north and make my new national anthem oh Canada and sipping a Canada Dry
And if I look at the news and hear sad reports about my former country I probably won’t have a tear in my eye

#poetry #america #wwiii #poem #poet #writing

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Charles Sturies Dec 2017

Like a Tiger

Call me a Tiger (a restless stud, I think)
I've got stripes around my shoulders, though
Connie Pommegan probably thought I had stripes everywhere
and I reminded him of drippy Fruit Stripe gum, I guess
and yeah my sergeant's stripes in ROTC
Come right now
like a tiger
like Tabien said
I guess I think I'm a tiger
literally (how dumb) with
Smokey the Bear thrown in
Tony the Tiger
roars.
This is probably a bore
Why a tiger
and a cartoon character -
I guess 'cause I think
I'm some sort of lovable
tomcat -
I don't know?
This poem went nowhere.

Charles Sturies

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William J Donovan May 2021

LSD in the Party Dip

In ROTC I dared to grow my hair.
   On the cusp of hippy life with
   burned bras and free love and
   smoking hash I dumped my baggage.
   I joined a circus going to Boston.
   I was baptized in saltwater. Plum Island.
   I made love to love tilting at windmills.
   In my attic I learned the hard truths.
   The People's Almanac was my bible and
   those who held my heart my confessors.

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William J Donovan Dec 2022

ROTC at XU and baby on the way.
    Full time job and losing my mind.
    I took your speed to keep going.
    I thought we'd be my parents.
    It seemed so effortless for them.

    Paisley shirts and bell bottoms,
    lava lamps, pass the joint and
    long hair and free love
    This has to be the 60's.
    My world split in two.

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— The End —