12.07.41

12.07.41

Name after name stands before me,

Etched in a marble wall.

Names that no longer have futures.

Drowned in fear,

Encased by metal,

Lungs filled with salt.

Name after name on white marble,

Set in stone,

Flag ever at half mast.

Name after name forgotten,

Family and friends already ash.

Their cries and knocking trapped under waves,

On the surface only calm,

Their echoes go unheard,

Only oil on water to show they are there.

No warning, no time to respond,

The radio code hangs on the air.

All that’s left are the names,

Futures fallen down in mid-flight,

Driven to the bottom,

Lost in the sand,

zeros and battleships rusting.

Just names,

Our boys are just names,

No longer spoken,

No longer heard,

Only flowered shirts pass by,

Bright petals glancing.

Fingertips brushing names,

But they are only names,

Nothing more than names.

VJ 5/24/10