It begins with, “Don’t you believe in company loyalty?” And while it is my boss, and while he is dating the owner’s daughter, I have to tell him, no. Because it is the truth. Because after I have seen what groups can do to people, what war - any kind of war - can do, I cannot be loyal to companies. To religions. To parties. To ideologies. Or even lines drawn on a map. “I am loyal to people,” I tell him. I am nineteen. And I think I am finally starting to understand why I fight so hard for justice.
Because your son came
home sick from Vietnam, I
will not burn the flag.
Author's note: This form is called a Haibun. A fellow poet suggested I try it because I was struggling with this rambling version. Condensing the poem, putting it in present tense, was incredibly eye opening (though I don't think I followed all the rules of the form).
Posted in Katherine's Coffeehouse, Poetically Speaking
