bare feet toughening on gravel
sunshine filtering through trees
fresh cut grass and sweat
musky books and #2 pencils
scantron evaluations
playing at war
fighting on playgrounds
awkward firsts: tongue kisses, beers, joints, crimes
dishonoring thy father and mother
summers on bicycles
child labor and savings accounts
skipping class
sex between the inexperienced
working with dad on the first car
riding the roads
parties and vomit
friends and drugs and dealing
the hardwood and brass of the court system
profit and greed and guns
a departure and enlistment
the breeze on a shaved head
mud
anger
exhaustion
training
foreign lands
foreign languages
deployment
sand and dirt and rocks and the burning sun
sweat and blood and fuel and oil
death piled upon horrific death until its commonplace
welcome home to green grass and golden sun
towering mountains of rock and snow
flatness unending
deployment
blood and fire
return and end
exit the familiarity
whiskey and rage
reluctant returns
finding a purpose
an internal struggle