Dreams- A Poem

This poem is written from the perspective of the wife of a drafted soldier. An occurring theme in books by Tim O’Brien is that innocent people’s lives are uprooted to fight a battle that isn’t their own. The soldiers of the Vietnam War were young men, straight out of college and high school. They had dreams and plans that had to be postponed or forgotten as soon as they received a draft letter. Often times those men would leave behind loved ones, be it family or a significant other. While being on the front line was horrific and brave, what their loved ones endured was not an easy feat either. 

When I was a little girl

I was taught to dream

Prince charming would come find me

A white bride I would gleam

When I grew older

I was taught to plan

My dreams became reality

I found a dashing young man

Then came a letter

All that I knew had changed

They took my prince charming

Forcefully estranged

Worry then controlled me

I dreamt one thing would come true

The war would end and he’d be safe

So we could dream again, as two.