Elevens

      Gratitude for service rendered

      is such an inadequate expression

      for all whose labors

      define the "V" in this day.

   To interrupt, if not wreck,

   your life with training

   for defending to the death

   is not a function easily disabled

   at the end of the day.

The moral injury of violence

so easily seeps into the marrow,

rendering life a volatile non sequitur;

exacerbating our lack of political

and cultural courage

in facing this requiem.

Let us dare to cease

our hiding behind the flag,

pledging, instead, adequate resources

for the amelioration

of battle's emotional carnage.

   Let us not merely put

   our money where our mouth is,

   but move it to the place

   where our heart beats.

      Let us risk speaking against war

      precisely because we are

      advocates for our veterans.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins