Death Was An Awakening

Yes death was an awakening We did not realize we carried it with us Until our smiles were wiped clean And the laughter had stopped It did not take long. Vietnam was life game changer We had been thrust into jungles As GI Joe’s, ready to kick some butt Instead, we were the ones being kicked. As trigger explosions were going off and our friends were dying We realized that death was waking us up Begging for our full attention which we gave For there is nothing like the horrors of war To shake an eighteen-year-old out of his cocoon of innocence To take his invincible attitude and twist it behind his back. War is hell and death is the rude awakener