Sunday, June 04, 2006

A Mother's Heartache

Empty Boots and Baby Shoes
By Stacy Bannerman
t r u t h o u t | Perspective

I am so tired of standing at memorials for soldiers; tired of weeping for the victims of this war.

I am tired of watching parents plant crosses for their dead children, day after day after godforsaken day.

I am tired of placing flowers in empty boots and baby shoes; of the way my body shakes at the first readings of the names that were added to the casualty count this week.

What's wearing me out is bearing witness to this war. This foreverness of death, and the unrelenting loss.

It drains my spirit to meet the widow's eyes; to watch the fathers falter, falling to their knees. Christ, that makes me weak.

To stand at the lip of the mouth of a grave that will never get enough

catching mothers tears, a nation driving by the dead, is exhausting to my soul.

I am deathly tired today.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Subway, I want you to sing/play my parody of 50 WAYs, here's the lyrics if you're interested -
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'50 Ways To Beat An Iraqi' - Stan and the Sequencers
parody of 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover by Paul Simon

The problem is all inside Iraq Bush said to me
The answer is easy if you take it logically
I'd like to help you in your struggle to be free
There must be fifty ways to beat an Iraqi

Bush said it's really not my habit to intrude
He was lying of course whilst Rush was downing 'ludes
But Bush repeated himself whilst being crude
There must be fifty ways to beat an Iraqi
Fifty ways to beat an Iraqi

Shove a broom up the back, Jack
Make a new pyrimid, clan
Don't need to be a boy, oye
Just incriminate thee
Hop on the triangle, Dud
You don't need to urinate much
Just drop off that load, GEEEIIIIII
And pretend that your free

She said it glees me so to see you in such pain
I wish there was something I could do to make you puke again
I said I appreciate that and would you please explain
About the fifty ways

She said why don't we both just piss on it tonight
And I believe in the moaning you'll begin to see the right
And then she kicked me and I realized she was probably a Shite
There must be fifty ways to beat an Iraqi
Fifty ways to beat an Iraqi

Strip off the clothes, Joe
Make a new prison, plan
You don't need to record it, Roy
Just get yourself greed
Hop on the guts, Just
Don't discuss much
Just drop off the body, greed
And call yourself free
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If you choose to take on this mission, let me know over @ C&L in the LNMC or an open thread when you know I'm around. Then wait 5 seconds, and this tape will self-destruct. ;-)