'Nam Man

My happiness is handicapped
And i don't understand why

My promises were promiscuous
To you

Riots in my mind
Savagely scattered remains
What used to be a life

I was my own tormentor
Searching for sincerity
Discovered deception

Disgraced from family
For being impartial
To immorality

Ostracized
Exiled into the world
Without prejudice

Wayfaring wanderer
Searching...
Unsure of what waited
Mysteries to uncover

Radically labeled
Insurgent rebel
Found home in
Incarceration

Land of the free
Home of the brave
But not for me

Released to find direction
Found the Army instead
Sent straight to 'Nam

Helicopters swirling
Over jungle hideaways

Bullets darting
More numerous than
Death mosquitoes

Confusion reigns supreme
In my deathly fever dream

Survival was my new savior
But i had to fight to keep it

Disease
Death
Destruction
A season in Hell

Escaped with shell shock
Tormented by ghosts of war

Back in USA
Not welcomed
A villians return

Therapy needed
Writing suggested
Along with lots of pharmaceuticals

Couldn't shake
Rabid demons
Day and night
They tormented

Stalked by reflections of the past
Hidden ghosts in the jungle of my mind

Sweet relief
When the devil's released
Pours out like cyanide
Onto these empty pages

I see peace at last
Just beyond the sunglazed horizon

Eyes grow dim
On my way
See you there

Daydream dazed
Urgent emergency
Life snuffed out

Autonomous autopsy
Pen stabbed neck
Bled out swiftly
On notebook pages