War is grotesque
For all its horror, you can’t help
but gape at the awful majesty of combat.
There are no virtues.
War is beauty.
The fluid symmetry of troops on the move
the harmonies of sound
You hate it
But your eyes do not.
The purply orange glow of napalm,
The white phosphorus.
Tracer rounds unwinding through the dark,
Like brilliant red ribbons.
A powerful, implacable beauty.
It embarrasses you.
You hate it
Like cancer under a microscope
Like a killer forest fire
Artillery barrage that has the aesthetic purity of
Absolute, immoral, indifference.
A true war story will tell the truth of this,
Though the truth is ugly
You can tell a true war story
You don’t care for obscenity,
You don’t care for the truth.
Excellent poem! I liked how you described two very different adjectives that can describe war. It is grotesque and yet there is beauty behind it all. great job!
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