Trench Art

the image of the fool

who carried the corpse of friendship

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across the mud and blood

of the battle field

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the dead weight lighter somehow

and the wound of silenced throat

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Howitzers roaring machine gun speak

and ran from the terror

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of rat s**t and fear

the corpse of humanity

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a bullet ridden shield

the sky cried into another bruising

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dawn

and the fool who carried

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the corpse lighter somehow

amidst the stench and mundanity of war

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Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

you painted a picture here...yes, violence of war...but the fool?
not so much...the load got lighter, why?
because this person is a hero, and would not leave his comrade behind...
he probably didn't even feel the weight....
one time I was working by this pit where two pipe fitters were working...the side of the hole collapsed and one guy (who already had a bad heart) was trapped up against the wall and was having trouble breathing. The whole was filled with large pieces of concrete...i doubt in ordinary circumstances i could have budged these pieces, but without thinking, two of us jumped into the hole, and moved them out of the way so we could get Archie out...he was okay...it is amazing what we can do when need overcomes the strength...
i would be a fool any day....
love this poem...
j.

[gram linski]

thanks, j. for the great review and for sharing the story, like these mothers who lift cars off their children , it's amazing what the human body can do under stress, maybe he was a fool in the eye of others, lol,

[PaintedBirdy]

for me this is not about an actual war. it's about a relationship. the fool is the one that keeps holding on to the other person (the corpse). i'm sure we've all been this fool at some time, because it's hard to let go of someone once we've become attached. i still want people back that are clearly dead.

mud.blood.battlefield. i see this as just the normal course of any dying relationship.

silenced throat is our inability to speak up. to admit the relationship is dead.

machine gun is the yelling.

the bullet-ridden shield is our defense-mechanism. our outward persona. who we are on the outside. we're all pretty damaged. our image of ourself is just a shield, with tons of bullet holes.

the fool. we want people to be good. and no matter how much we're disappointed, we keep hoping.

i've always loved the word "mundane" :)

thank you for writing and sharing this. much enjoyed, friend!

[gram linski]

man, you've been in some brutal relationships, lol , but is fairly relevant,always enjoy your take on thing, that love is a battle field, thanks for reading, was going to review your spunk poem and I might when I get the foul taste out of my mouth, haha, hope you are keeping well,

[PaintedBirdy]

i'm keeping well. take care too!

[barleygirl]

You have powerfully expressed what I most dislike about being in a presidential election year, here in the USA, & also being in the middle of this pandemic. I find the abrasive confrontational diatribe going around to be very much like being at war, with people reading humor or flippant remarks as sins against mankind & punishable by mean growling pile-ons. People writing long self-righteous commentaries about the stupidity of everyone else, while displaying a stunning array of stupidity in the mere exercise of telling everyone else off for being stupid. Everyone is being stupidly stupid about stupidity & if this ain't war, then I guess I'm just ducking s**t bombs. Thank you for giving me this opening to vent . . . sorry I'm fresh out of rainbows, but they'll be back in stock soon! (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[gram linski]

Hey, Margie, great rant, vent away haven't read much of the stupidly stupid, but I know what you mean , thanks for the great review, always appreciate a Margie rant, lol,

[Chris Shaw]

Trench warfare, you present the stark imagery here of what those poor men had to face. They had no idea what they were getting themselves into. The fool carrying the corpse found himself dealing with the unspeakable. He could have been any one of us, not knowing when our number was up, just surviving from day to day.

Chris

[gram linski]

thanks, Chris really can't comprehend that kind of courage from young guys, and we think we've got it bad, thanks again for the read apreciate

[Chris Shaw]

They had a huge sense of duty and their mates were everything. They really were in there together, they had no choice. We should never forget them.

[Thomas Fitzgerald]

Vivid imagery, a piece that garners emotion, and leads the reader to conclusion, well done, good read.

[gram linski]

thanks Thomas, if I can garner emotion and a bit of thought then I am a happy man, appreciate the review

[R.E. Ray]

Gram, we do "foolish" things in the eyes of others. I've been in situations like what you've described here. I admit I'm often a narcissistic a*s, but never in those situations. Honestly, I'm surprised I'm not dead or crippled, even when acting for someone I didn't personally like. I think our humanity is part of our subconscious. We'd want someone to save us, even if they didn't like us, even if it was a foolish thing to do.

[gram linski]

thanks, man , admire your courage, thanks for the read,

[Beccy]

I understand your perspective, but consider that as a species, we seem to revel in war. Revere it almost, as if it is an heroic pursuit, rather than a so pointlessly destructive one.

As a mother, I would like to see an end to it all. Never have to wonder if my son will be called to the will of those who will never be the first out of the 'trenches,' but instead, will skulk behind the walls they have built to shield their own worthless and self serving lives.

Let me warrant, that if, just as an example, Putin and Assad were made to don uniform and sent to the front line, that before the ink was dry in the mornings headlines, there would be an end to the conflict in Syria and an end to the deliberate slaughter of so many innocent men, women and children.

'who wishes to fight must first count the cost'. Sun Tzu, 'The art of war.'

Beccy.

[gram linski]

great Sun Tzu quote, Beccy, aye you are right about that, on on on said the generals from the back, thanks again for the read,

[Eilis]

I have always loved the innocence of the Forrest Gump character and how he interacted with the world and impacted the world just by living naturally in it. He rescued his lieutenant without thought, but the man he carried out of the battlefield was profoundly impacted by what he lost rather than what he managed to hold on to.

Your use of fool at the beginning made me think of the different ways we perceive action or fate. One man’s selfless act may be another man’s torture. Only the individual ultimately has the power to interpret the action and life itself becomes the canvas where these things are worked out.

But also, more simply, I see this as an encounter with the chaos of war itself. Makes me think of WWI in particular and the novels I’ve read that depict the trench warfare and precarious nature of life in the thick of it. The boys who enlisted having no idea what they were walking in to. But once they were there they just had to keep going until they died, were discharged or the fighting ended. It’s a miracle any made it out alive.

Your poem speaks to the chaos and uncertainty for sure. But also to something like the inner-mind state. What comes next, is my question. So many stories hanging for the hero and those he saves.

Evocative work here, Gram.

[gram linski]

thanks as always, Eilis, how do we perceive action or fate, the hero fool, depends on the angle of perception, the difference is in the odd vowel or two, lol, makes sense to me and Gee,

[Robert Trakofler]

I have had a few pieces of trench art over the years and unfortunately had to sell them:/ but non as beautiful as the one you speak of:) as any soldier will tell you I hate war but few things are as beautiful as the commraderie

[gram linski]

wow, thanks, B, didn't know you were a soldier, always admired the soldier spirit, you start as a bunch of strangers and then that sense of commraderie sets in, thanks again