Patriotic Poem

Last April which seems ages ago I won an honorable mention for a poem I wrote in honor of my stepfather Earl Blomberg. It seems appropriate to share it on my blog in honor of all those soldiers present and past in our families that fought to preserve our freedoms and the freedoms of other lands.

THE OLD SOLDIER

by Lin Floyd

He sits quietly, won’t talk about the war.

Memories too raw to reveal even after decades.

We ignore grandpa, reading quietly in his chair.

Forgotten he is and remains until the day,

we ask questions about the conflict for his bio.

Suddenly he returns, recalls forgotten details.

Those days of long ago: sleeping in trenches,

eating spoiled K-rations, watching friends die,

killing young Japanese soldiers––just boys,

hating an unknown attacking enemy.

War is never pleasant to remember, difficult

to forget as dreams and memories linger on.

Now we understand his quietness, withdrawn

within to heal from wounds of body and spirit.

An old soldier rests from battles that continue.