Armistice
I pass the long train
as it waits, unmoving,
each flat car carrying military vehicles —
armored tanks with caterpillar tracks,
long gun noses extend into air —
the kind of transport we only see on the news
rolling down the streets of Baghdad,
Helmand province,
Tiananmen Square,
right here in Ceres, California,
and for a minute it jolts me,
all the more ironic
since it is Memorial Day weekend
and this looks like an invasion,
tank after tank after tank,
gray green gigantic Tonka toys
that have played for real
in the game of war,
not raw recruits
but old war horses,
veterans,
hopefully on their way
to some kind of resting place
where they will be honored
for their service,
never used again
Nancy Haskett
Modesto Branch, CA
Your poem really touched home, particularly with so much military equipment being given to local police departments, turning them into fear and military forces, rather than having the local police protecting the peace and creating trust in the community.
I WILL USE THEIR SERVICE AGAIN AND AGAIN
WHEN I PLACE MY HAND OVER MY HEART AND
THANK THEM FOR THEIR SACRIFICE, HEROISM,
AND LIFE – FOR ALL THE PARADES I’LL EVER SEE AGAIN
TAPS I’LL EVER HEAR AGAIN – THEIR SERVICE WILL
BE AN ETERNAL FLAME IN MY HEART
BARB WHITMARSH
GOD BLESS AMERICA