crypituri/

crypituri/

A Poem by h d e rushin

my
mother wrote a daily letter
to my brother when he shipped out to Nam in 72.
Although, uneventfully, nothing much had
happened differently from the day before.
There are things you can hide behind
transformed. like turning metaphors
into a sort of earth energy. It was her
way of pointing at his baby pictures
in the blue album that sat on the coffee table
in the yellow, faded plastic.
"That's him as an Indian",
"That's him again as a carpenter",
That's us in the background with him
as a policeman holding firm
as if discharging his weapon into
a crowd of protestors. Letters
written are a product of metabolism. They
drain, then they discharge. When
your dressed in a leather pantsuit,
skin on the back of your leg comes off.
You run thru the house deprived of voices.
You rub essential oils on your feet.
You tire quickly almost to the point of collapse.
The Dr, told her she was overworked/overlooked. It
was the way the Asians behind the deli counter
at Kroger's give their ceremonial blessings
before setting fire to her ureter. Deprived
we brought home a cat.

Later
brother came home a changed man. Wanting to
each morning, annihilate something; smother something half alert,
kick hay over a sweater strewn bedroom. lay facedown
listening for foot pounds. Eat his supper from a can.
Everyone got drunk. Ransom is the way
war treats sanctification. Each night
a barrel is placed to the temple of the youngest
in the room. Go with me and pretend
that i'm making this up.

© 2019 h d e rushin


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Reviews

This was fantastic.
The details were vividly portrayed, and raw.

as if discharging his weapon into
a crowd of protestors

rub essential oils on your feet

Eat his supper from a can

It told a story of how war affects not just those who march off, but those who are "home".

It also accurately describes how war changes a person, and how that trauma can ripple through a family, community, country...

Great stuff.



Posted 4 Years Ago


h d e rushin

4 Years Ago

thank you brother for understand the times in America (or even the world) where war has an impact, w.. read more
A painful story of what war does to families as well as the one coming home . . . who is full of anger and rage . . . fearful, lost somewhere in himself. I often wonder what my mother thought of my military service (69-71). She never said, nor did I ask. I hope your brother, if he's still alive, is doing okay.
T

Posted 4 Years Ago


h d e rushin

4 Years Ago

thank you dearest...My brother took his own life in 2004 when fentanyl first hit the streets of Detr.. read more
not easy ... not at all ... especially for our Nam Vets ... coming home to angst against war and in particular...that war made things far more difficult .. some things a person will never un-see ... and adrenaline injected life does not settle ... does not allow a person to "return" ...always an honor to read your poetry h d .... it's the real deal says i!

Posted 4 Years Ago


h d e rushin

4 Years Ago

your so correct Einstein. That Vietnam war was different in terms of the psychasthenia it caused. Th.. read more

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Added on May 29, 2019
Last Updated on May 29, 2019

Author

h d e rushin
h d e rushin

detroit, MI



About
black american poet living in detroit. more..

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