He was stoic through the procedure. All the while we talked about deployments, his in Iraq and mine inAfghanistan. He said it was while he was there that they found his cancer. How he was lucky, in a waythat he went as he might not have done anything about the symptoms if he was still […]
Tag: Matthew Borczon
Three PTSD Poems II – Matthew Borczon
details in Afghanistanthe toiletshad no seatand thecurtain onthe showerwas transparentbut youwould forgetto feelindignantas youstood in100 degreeheat underscalding watertryingto washthe bloodoff yourskin My wifeasks whyI stillsmoke ifI associateit withmy daysin thewar andhad neversmokedbefore Iwent toAfghanistanand Itry totell herwe weretired 12hour shiftsa hotshower anda circleof guyssmoking andtrying tothink ofsomethingto saysome dayswe justsmoked andsat likedead menand nowall […]
Twelve Gauge – Matthew Borczon
Robin would fire the 12 gauge shot gun into the trees. Usually about once every twenty minutes. The rest of the time she drank shots of whiskey with me and we pretended there was nothing strange about either of us. I asked her what she was shooting at in the trees, “nothing, just shooting. I’ll […]
Three PTSD Poems – Matthew Borczon
night terror 20 tonight I held a British machine gun in my dream and I am outside and my uniform feels new and not stiff from sweat and bleach as I march with a detail of soldiers off the base all the while I am wishing I had tried harder back at fort Jackson […]