Memorial Day finds us, another year older
Memorial Day finds us no less bolder
"A war to end all wars" once said
Why, since then, are so many more dead?
Do you want to really end wars?
Are you messing with our heads?
It's been: A war on British for freedom
A war on Indians for more land
A war in the South to end slavery
A World, both I and II to end aggression
Soldiers keep marching in succession
A war to end communism
Now a war to end terror
Somehow since 'to end all wars' there's occurred an error
This Memorial Day, the war skies are no fairer
People in America have no decent jobs
Around the world, people form protest mobs
Another soldier dies, another mother sobs
We talk about love
We know more about hate
Some young soldier, for prom, just wants a date
We love our kids, so we say
Yet we pack them off to war to die
Same old lies, just another day
To die for what?
For Coke and Pepsi to get a foothold?
It's no reason to die, if I might be so bold
Sending kids to their deaths
We knew we always could
Do we ever ask if we should?
Wars are a rich person's game
Different day, the lies remain the same
Stop that war, we think someone should
But would you stop a war if you could?
The military: Go to war, my Son, or Daughter, you should
They will pay you badly, morn your death, sadly
On Memorial Day, we honor with our lips
Yet another war plan, corporations pull from their hips
I long so to hear from those who "should go"
"This new war? No thanks. This time I will skip"
Memorial Day finds us another year older
When it comes to war, still no less bolder
I hope you find something better to do than become a soldier
I have always been a firm believer that everyone has a story to tell. Why do I think that? I know this to be true because even if people have shared similar experiences, like war, poverty or family tragedy, each person's experience is unique to them.
I could be in the same war, same natural disaster but I will see it totally differently. My experiences will cause me to see things in a different light than even a person standing next to me.
That being said, it is good to write about our lives, about what we personally have been through, how we may or may not have handled the situation. By writing, by sharing, we just may touch on the heart string of another reader who has or is now, going through something so similar that they are changed, forever, by what we have written. Is everyone an excellent writer? Maybe not, but writing your story isn't as complicated as you might think. With self-publishing these days, I know that what you might see as ordinary in your lives, can now reach hundreds maybe even millions of readers. I love self-publishing because I think the reading public is not stupid. I prefer to let the readers decide what they like, not some publisher who chooses for them.
I have assisted people in editing, arranging and telling their stories. I enjoyed it very much. Why? Because while helping a writer arrange their thoughts and notes, I have read some very touching stories. I am going to show you some great examples of that.
My husband's book is at the top of this blog. While I may be a bit biased on his, I can assure you it is somewhat a universal story about war. About one soldier's experiences of a war that has been such an embarrassment to the United States government, that for a very long time, the government tried to bury it and pretend it never existed. Kind of like the WMD fiasco that has now drawn us into wars where we do not belong, to this very day. Steve tells about his experiences in Vietnam, how it's so easy to be drawn into a war and hate faceless enemies. But once there, once he got to know the people of that country, it became increasingly harder and harder to hate people who did nothing to us personally. He tells of the fears soldiers face when fired upon, how most soldiers, from both sides, will shoot others more from fear than from hatred. How propaganda about the perceived enemy, is the driving force behind all wars. He tells why he chose to make the military his career and why he chose to become a Drill Instructor to be able to teach all soldiers how to survive when faced with combat. I'm sure anyone will love his story.
Poems of a Forgotten War is a series of Steve's feelings about a war he participated in. They express how he felt. Sometimes torn, sometimes he loved the country, sometimes not so much. But they can certainly express how many people in a war feel about those sometimes mixed emotions. Did he have regrets? Well, does anyone ever experience anything as emotional as war and not have regrets? Vietnam may be in the past, but stories he has read about concerning our recent wars are similar. So he has come to the conclusion that war is war, no matter the era in which it takes place. These are poems that modern military people can relate to.
The nursing home book is my story. I guess you can call it my baby. I've worked with the elderly in nursing homes for a long time. I've worked with the elderly in the community for a long time too. This is a book about my observations of the situation that many elderly find themselves in when they are too frail to take care of themselves at home. It is a tale of many people facing this situation. Some like nursing homes, but far too many hate the experience. I try to explain why people hate it, what causes them to feel like it's hopeless. But I also tell how and why, it can all change, if people stand up and demand changes for the better. I explain how the Federal Government and state governments think throwing money at the problem should change it. It doesn't. But I also tell of the Culture Change movement taking place in America right now. I explain how it can change for the better and why it should change. I'm hoping everyone will read it, learn from it and I hope they will demand changes and understand that the government is not the hope for changes they might have expected them to be.
I have one more story to share. I'm hoping this writer will not mind my sharing it. I chose it because it is so powerful, I think everyone should read it. This story is set in a time when home health for someone who is dying of cancer, did not exist. This writer tells about a time when a woman, her own mother, had to experience the shame of having a child out of wedlock. She tells of growing up and feeling she was hated by her own mother. How she, as a very young child, had to care for a mother who was so sick, she almost felt overwhelmed by it all. But most importantly, it is a story of healing. A story of coming to understand that it was not her that her mother hated, but it was the situation her mother found herself in, that was the object of her hatred. She tells of a mother who was so proud and strong, she felt like she lived in her mother's shadow as a child. A very unique story that anyone who may not have the perfect parent, can relate too. I hope you will take time to read it. The author related to me how just telling her story has given her the emotional healing she so desperately wanted and needed. A good author, a powerful book.
I hope you have enjoyed reading about the healing power of stories. Do you have a story to tell? If so, I'd be happy to help anyone compile their story into a manuscript. Yes, I charge, but I charge far less them others and far less than you might think. I can work on a sliding scale.
Thank you for reading this blog.
photo: Steve Weathers
Soldier, you are not forgotten
I once served in an entire war, all but forgotten
Forgotten, forgotten, your government treats you rotten
But always remember, by other veterans, you aren't forgotten
I know how those dreams make you feel
I know how those memories, night sweats, make you reel
Bad sights, into your dreams they steal
Don't feel bad, don't feel sad, you really haven't been had
Don't give up or give in
You haven't committed the greatest sin
We joined, for whatever reason
We joined in good faith, we served for a season
Don't think it is all in vain
Even if it's hard to see past the pain
How could you know? How could I know?
We signed up in good faith, why did we go?
We thought it was the right thing to do at the time
Friends, relatives, thought we lost our minds
Don't give up, don't close your door
We all; veterans, support you, from shore to shore
Feeling bad, feeling sad?
Contact me, together we can once again feel glad
For what it's worth, the pain is great, I know it hurts
You can't redo your past
Decide to go on, do it fast
The pain sometimes feels it will last and last
Together, Soldiers, this hurt we can get past
Reach out, to other vets, those you know, some you don't
Don't suffer alone, don't close your door
We as veterans, know, it was a hell of a war
Some say: "You knew the score."
But have they ever been to a war?
Reach out, veterans young and old
We are here to help, we all exist from shore to shore
Together we can stop a war
Let our new war cry be: "A war? Oh never more!"
They need to listen to us who have gone before
Just exactly who makes war?
Generals, Congress, Rich men, of course
Just exactly who fights the actual war?
It ends up becoming the poor against the poor
Is this a poem of 'let's hate the rich?'
No, but you don't have to be anyone's bitch
Harsh words you might say
Well away from killing, plundering and hate you must stay
What have the poor of another country done to you?
Try to see their point of view
Would we like to be preyed upon right here?
For some soldiers to ruin what we might hold dear?
As young soldiers we think war is a grand duty
But all we do is add to someone's rich booty
War and death isn't what you do as a lark
War isn't exactly a walk in the park
But as young people we never listen to the older one
We just think, it's different, so we pick up that gun
Maybe we don't get every gory detail
Explaining war in words is where all words seem to fail
How do you put into words what war is about?
How does a soldier adequately explain what war is about?
I wish you would listen, young man, young woman
Because war is not the noble cause for freedom like you heard
But war's horrors cannot be placed into any word
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