dead space

Your exact concern was in my mind when I wrote this, but I wanted to say that the dead space on that trail was also inside us. One of the worse things that happened there was the indifference we felt about men dying somewhere. Since we didn't sustain casualities in the ambush, the next day was just putting the 100 pounds we carried on our backs again, and moving further into the mountains. So, I ended the poem with the almost prosaic notion of repetetive, tired existence.

Medal of Honor recepient Sen. Bob Kerrey of Nebraska once said, "The worse thing isn't dying for your country, it's killing for it. That's what haunts you all your life." He was right.