by Susan Giesen
Why are you so afraid?
It's all this war talk.
My sons will all be draft age
very soon. I can't bear the
thought of them--
Of them what? Are you afraid
of them being shot?
No.
Are you afraid of them being
disabled, losing an arm, a leg,
being blinded?
It's not that. I could live with
that and so could they.
It must be death that you fear
so much. The thought of losing
them.
No, it's much worse than that.
What could be worse than that?
I've seen soldiers come home.
It's the look in their eyes. My
sons have never had that look,