Veni, Vidi, Vici

Inspired by Shirley Rebstock’s powerful  Poem “The War In My Mind”.
For the brave warriors who served our country, and now suffer from PTSD.

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“Veni, Vidi, Vici”, Julius Caesar’s famous words;
I came, I saw, I conquered, sent to Rome by carrier birds!
The slaughter of opposition, standing in path of Roman rule;
Bow down and now surrender, or be part of our death pool!
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Fast forward two millenniums, mankind still fighting wars;
Countries still filled with hatred, each other they abhor!
But instead of swords and arrows, artillery now we glean;
To mow down all that oppose us, our mighty “War Machine”!
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Yet, we also lose our dear friends, the enemy sometimes wins;
Eventually, there comes a white flag, and a period of peace begins!
We come home with lots of medals, pinned upon our saddened chests;
For we cannot forget the faces, of the souls we put to rest!
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We return to be civilians, but can’t shake the PTSD;
In nightmares we still are fighting, hearing Taps and Revelry!
It’s so hard to now assimilate, when our minds cannot forget;
About the horrors they have witnessed, the atrocities of all War’s debt!