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Eulogy For Ryan
| Open Poetry #49 |
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Eulogy For Ryan |
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ice Member Elite
since 2003-05-17
Posts 3404Pennsylvania |
 Boarding the Dover flight, His body retrieved, For all time, a soldier. A could-have-been teacher, Comes home mute-tight zippered, In a black HRP. . Transcending away from air, And scorch of desert heat, Into cool mountain breezes, That bless the hills of Liberty. He arrives, burned, But unblisterd By wars eternal flame, That no one seems able To control...or put out. Plug all purple holes With sealing wax- Paint his flesh pink, Place his body In a wooden box- Comb it- groom-it make Him look natural -- Pretend he is asleep. . Play martial music- Smooth the look of fright From his last grimace-- Knowing he will not wake, To tell you horrors truth... . Carry his once supple body, Soul released, at the whim Of high command,commands, He swore an oath to follow. Honor it with stern face; Wash with supple tears What here is placed, Now stiff, Beneath a cold stone.. . Rain will dance here, On soft, eternal feet. Grass will mend the scarred earth, And hail, erase the etched rock; As slowly, all graves fade 'til only the parentheses remains To sign a life has passed, And only dust persists Beneath these rock maple trees- . note: I lived near Liberty Pennsylvania (population 868) for a very long time...so I know this young mans family, and shared their loss, which I think of as a loss for all mankind. I passed by him many times, while he waited for the school bus..When I try to picture his face as a child, his image turns away..all I see is a shadow...that turns away from me like someone I have failed.  Ryan S. Ostrom,25, died in Iraq, August 9, 2005 |
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| © Copyright 2015 ford hume - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Lori Grosser Rhoden Member Patricius
since 2009-10-10
Posts 10202Fair to middlin' of nowhere |
Ice, You have gone beyond the traditional trappings of remembering a fallen Soldier, you have gone into the deep and private places of his humanity so that he can never be just one more gone. Well done. ~L |
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JerryPat2 Member Laureate
since 2011-02-06
Posts 16975South Louisiana |
Lori is right, man, this is a poem of devout creativity made even more "real" because you recall this fallen one chased by memories of the schoolboy you used to see waiting for the school bus. I'm honored to have had a chance of reading this. ~ Do what you have to do to feel right, |
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Margherita Member Seraphic
since 2003-02-08
Posts 22236Eternity |
Impressive, dear Ford. These tragic deaths become all the more painful when there is also personal knowledge. Losing a son in his youth brings shadows into the lives of those who remain behind, that can never be erased. Margherita |
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ice Member Elite
since 2003-05-17
Posts 3404Pennsylvania |
Lori, Jerry, and Margherita...Thank You for reading and the replies This is one of the saddest poems I have ever written. I was going to show it to the close family members, but when one of his cousins read it, she burst into tears..so I didn't again, thank you |
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Cari Member Posts 411 Englnand |
Your poem chooses one man among the many and so adds a personal feel to the poem. A politician may mention his name and preen his feathers in his sacrifice for a few seconds then move on. I get a sense of the futility of war in the text as have most poets written who have actually fought in the carnage of total war. One such was Wilfred Owen who was killed in the final days of WW1. The last few lines of his ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’ are. What candles may be held to speed them all? Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes. The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall; Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds, And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds. Though I too have written on the same subject, I won’t post for couple of weeks; your poem demands to read without opposition. Congratulations Cari. |
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ice Member Elite
since 2003-05-17
Posts 3404Pennsylvania |
Thank you Cari I am a huge fan of WW1 poets, and the honesty within their poems. Love Owens, and Sassoon, Brooke, Graves, and Hardy..and also Randell Jarrell (WW2) From my mother’s sleep I fell into the State, And I hunched in its belly till my wet fur froze. "Six miles from earth, loosed from its dream of life, I woke to black flak and the nightmare fighters. When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose." I am far from an advocate of war, but the horrors are on my mind alot. Looking forward to your poem.... "Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance." Carl Sandburg |
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JamesMichael Member Empyrean
since 1999-11-16
Posts 33336Kapolei, Hawaii, USA |
Fine writing about the pains of war when it seems all they have left is sadness...james |
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rainyday Member Posts 304 Heartland USA |
This is Outstanding Ice, needs to be published..more eyes need to see it, more hearts need to feel it. Excellent write Poet! rainy |
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