Flash,
yellow to red.
Green to white, and then,
black.
The sounds ceased.
Vanished.
Viet Cong cloaked in the quiet.
Flash,
back to green.
The traffic began to flow,
American cars and steel buildings.
Not the VC.
The Viet Cong belonged,
to the jungle,
to the war.
Not the here,
not the now.
But there they were,
in the shadows,
in the sounds,
in the streets.
Contaminating,
infiltrating.
The traffic light switched,
back to yellow,
then black.
Eyes shut,
to block out,
the past, in the now.
An original poem written to imitate a possible experience of a Vietnam Veteran suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
I think this poem accurately depicts the struggles of someone dealing with PTSD. I like the use of colors to describe the war, especially "black." I also think the abrupt, jarring flow of the poem fits well with the subject matter.
ReplyDeleteI found poetry most accurately displayed the effects of PTSD because I was able to creatively manipulate the structure of the writing to reflect the chaotic feelings a PTSD victim may experience.
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