Gender Genuflection
The sergeant says,
you know the drill
And the new grunts get the spit down
Pressed pants and shiny boots
in the barracks
are military grade thumbs up
But, in the showers, eyes are cast down
Murmurs and rumors
are the foul body wash
that rinses off the raw recruit’s skin
Thick is the steam of intolerance,
thin is the patience of acceptance
Soldier girl
enlisted to serve her country
when she was a high school lad
Soldier boy
went to serve his nation
when he was a dropout lass
Everybody got five fingers on their hand,
everyone has five toes on their feet
The only difference is
the force of your will —
courage forged
in fierce firefights
of combat’s battle heat
Knee jerk reaction
to gender genuflexion
ain’t good for troop morale
Soldier girl with the hard body shell,
will die for his band of brothers
Shouldn’t they do the same for her as well?
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