Left at the Wall – v4

Pieces, shards only

broken fragments

of your story, heartache;

their stories, unfinished

of their lives, cut short

gone to Vietnam

without coming home

so many young men

not here with us

so many women alone

comrades with guilt,

nightmares of that place

so far away, distant

from everything we know

so alien, foreign,

the jungle, Vietnam

things we bring

to you, to them

left at the Wall,

not where they lay

praying for wholeness

one day, for them

===

edited November 11, 2014

Left at the Wall – v4

Veteran’s Day

edited May 27, 2014

Left at the Wall – v3

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2014/05/left-at-wall-v3.html

Edited May 26, 2014

Left at the Wall – v2

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2014/05/left-at-wall-v2.html

Memorial Day

August 5, 2006 18:05

Left at the Wall

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2006/08/left-at-wall.html

&

poem:

November 11, 2010

“In the Rain, in that Place”

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2010/11/in-rain-in-that-place.html

Veteran’s Day 2010

and remembering being

at the Vietnam Memorial

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial

vvmf.org

during the 10^th anniversary

Veteran’s Day 1992

&

All of my Veteran’s Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Veteran%E2%80%99s%20Day

&

All of my Memorial Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Memorial%20Day

 

All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for usage. See all 42,390+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Left at the Wall – v3

Pieces, shards only

broken fragments

of your story, heartache

their stories, unfinished

of their lives, cut short

without coming home

so many young men

so many women alone

comrades with guilt,

nightmares of that place

so far away, distant

from everything we know

so alien, foreign

the jungle, Vietnam

things we bring

to you, to them

left at the Wall

not where they lay

praying for wholeness

one day

===

edited May 27, 2014

Left at the Wall – v3

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2014/05/left-at-wall-v3.html

Edited May 26, 2014

Left at the Wall – v2

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2014/05/left-at-wall-v2.html

Memorial Day

August 5, 2006 18:05

Left at the Wall

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2006/08/left-at-wall.html

&

poem:

November 11, 2010

“In the Rain, in that Place”

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2010/11/in-rain-in-that-place.html

Veteran’s Day 2010

and remembering being

at the Vietnam Memorial

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial

vvmf.org

during the 10^th anniversary

Veteran’s Day 1992

&

All of my Veteran’s Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Veteran%E2%80%99s%20Day

&

All of my Memorial Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Memorial%20Day

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 29,930+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

In the Rain, in that Place – v2

I remember one Veteran’s Day

twelve years ago, almost

(where has the time gone)

the stillness, the tears

the overwhelming consequence

in the rain, in that place

Ten years after

the scar cut into the land

names written in stone

who fell so far away

in the jungles of Vietnam

the men coming home

to this hallowed ground

Tears of strong men

who answered their country’s call

falling in the rain in this place

on this holy ground

overcome by emotion

the power of this place

kneeling by the Wall

===

edited May 26, 2014

“In the Rain, in that Place – v2”

Memorial Day

November 11, 2010

“In the Rain, in that Place”

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2010/11/in-rain-in-that-place.html

Veteran’s Day 2010

and remembering being

at the Vietnam Memorial

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial

during the 10^th anniversary

Veteran’s Day 1992

&

Edited May 26, 2014

Left at the Wall – v2

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2014/05/left-at-wall-v2.html

Memorial Day

August 5, 2006 18:05

Left at the Wall

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2006/08/left-at-wall.html

&

All of my Veteran’s Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Veteran%E2%80%99s%20Day

&

All of my Memorial Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Memorial%20Day

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 29,900+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Left at the Wall – v2

Pieces, shards

broken fragments

of your story

their stories

of their lives

without you

so many young men

so many women alone

comrades with guilt,

nightmares of that place

so far away

from all we know

so alien

in the jungle

in Vietnam

things we bring

to you, to them

left at the Wall

not where they lay

===

Edited May 26, 2014

Left at the Wall – v2

Memorial Day

August 5, 2006 18:05

Left at the Wall

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2006/08/left-at-wall.html

&

All of my Veteran’s Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Veteran%E2%80%99s%20Day

&

All of my Memorial Day poems

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/search/label/Memorial%20Day

& earlier poem:

November 11, 2010

“In the Rain, in that Place”

http://raymondafoss.blogspot.com/2010/11/in-rain-in-that-place.html

Veteran’s Day 2010

and remembering being

at the Vietnam Memorial

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial

during the 10^th anniversary

Veteran’s Day 1992

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 29,900+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

In the Rain, in that Place

I remember one Veteran’s Day
the stillness, the tears
the overwhelming consequence
in the rain, in that place

Ten years after
the scar cut into the land
the men coming home
to this hallowed ground

Tears of strong men
who answered their countries
falling in the rain in this place
on this holy ground

November 11, 2010
Veteran’s Day 2010
and remembering being
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial
at the Vietnam Memorial
during the 10th anniversary
Veteran’s Day 1992

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,410+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Makeshift Memorials

Instant monuments
makeshift memorials
of senseless tragedies
all across America
flowers, stuffed animals,
candles, messages
of instant grief
sudden shock
horror at lives cut so short
moments of uncommon
loss, on our streets
on the anonymous highways
skid marks, scarred trees
new telephone poles
looking for reason
in random loss

August 5, 2006 18:08

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 18,840+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Left at the Wall

Pieces, shards
broken fragments
of your story
their stories
of their lives
without you
so many young men
so many women alone
comrades with guilt,
nightmares of that place
so far away
from all we know
so alien
in the jungle
in Vietnam

August 5, 2006 18:05

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 19,730+ of my poems at http://www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.