THE RACE By Phillip Sam Oyler I remember the expanse of ominous green That spread before my eyes Anothers urgent plea, from men unseen They were desperate, primal cries I summon more from the groaning ship As we plunged through the failing light Scanning the gauges, I chewed my lip and prayed for faster flight “Just north of a winding river… Below a prominent ridge… Look for a road that is barely a sliver. We’re are under the rotting bridge A ghostly mist in the shadows below Was a joyous and wonderful sight. It marked the course of the rivers flow, As dusk turned into night. Off to the north the bamboo jutted Into an indigo sky. A small narrow road, twisted and rutted, Soon caught my straining eye “we hear you sir,” the radio sputtered, “you’re a click or so from the creek,” “Thank you GOD,” I quickly muttered, As sweat rolled down my cheek They clamored up the muddy bank And ran down the fading road, With the Asian sun, my heart too sank When I saw the grizzly load Across each shoulder, they bore the dead, Who had lived but minutes before Gently they laid them in pools of red Upon the cargo floor A deep jungle darkness has settled in And bullets went awry Now, blackness had become our special friend While tracers searched the sky True, I had won the race with nightfall And had found there hiding place, But a darker specter heard the call And had matched my frantic pace. Once aloft, I hung my head As the jungle sped past below “could I spared those, now dead, Had I not been so slow,” No one could hear me weeping above the engine’s roar, For those spralled as if sleeping Upon the cargo floor Then came a voice from far away, “they’re with me , I’ll comfort their mothers Tomorrow, I’ll give another day, And I’ll Help you rescue others” THE RACE By Phillip Sam Oyler US Army Vietnam 1968
Posted on: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:28:37 +0000
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