I was gone for weeks this time and nobody missed me <br />It was just like the last time when I disappeared <br />Into the deep dark and dangerous jungle for a year <br />And when I finally emerged alive and well <br />My hair was long and my beard hid my face from view <br />No one recognized me as a wounded warrior but instead <br />Chose to see me as just another escaped animal <br />That needed to be caged or quarantined for my own protection <br />Because in all likelihood I had become a real killer <br />I had blood stains on my hands and my breath smelled like death <br />My teeth were sharp and my even sharper eyes x-rayed my chosen prey <br />I could count the ribs on my side with my fingerless hands <br />And I was extremely hungry for anything that moved <br />It was then I knew for sure that I would never be able to adapt <br />To a civilized world in which people pretended not to know <br />Where the bodies are all buried <br />Yet they erect a monument to commemorate the atrocities <br />Committed on their behalf…. <br /> <br /> <br />(2007)<br /><br />Ted Sheridan<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/war-zoned/
