war poetry

Two nights ago I had the great pleasure of meeting and hearing poetry read by soldier/poet Brian Turner. His book of poems called Here,Bullet has garnered numerous awards around the country and rightfully so. The book is full of honest and raw observations of the war in Iraq, where Turner served as a Sergeant.

Brian Turner did things a bit backwards. He received his Masters Degree in English Lit. before joining the military. He has been writing for some time but the experience in Iraq seemed to charge his poetry with something else, something that language can't define. He says in one of his poems, "I have no words of war". Although he so eloquently paints a picture for us, you get the feeling that what he witnessed is, after all, unspeakable. This book is just a slice of it.

I had such a huge, passionate reaction to his poems when I first read the book. Hearing them read aloud sent shivers down my spine. You know why? Because we, citizens of America, never get to hear the soldier's voice or the truth for that matter and when we do hear it, it is shocking. We hear pundits on TV all day long arguing this and that, playing games with each other, saying that they know what's going on in the war. Well, they don't know shit about what's going on. Until you hear it from a soldier's mouth or you go there yourself, you will never know the horrors that come of war.

Brian Turner struck me as a strong and thoughtful man whose eyes hold deep wells of sad memories. A man, not physically wounded in battle, but wounded nonetheless. It would be impossible to come home after seeing the things he saw and not be changed, not to be hurt in some way. Because that is what's human. That is what we are missing in our national discussion. The humanity. There is a massive disconnect going on with this war and I think that it will be a great downfall for the next generation of Americans because they are inheriting a country that has been made to fear their own government, distracted and brainwashed. This is a sad day not just for our country, but for the world.

If you are sick of hearing what everyone thinks they know about war and you'd like to hear some truth you should read Here,Bullet. It's not a political book. It's an observation. You can take what you want from it but it will change you. Mr. Turner posed a great question to a group of students at the poetry reading. He asked, "Just as there are bombs exploding in Iraq, are there not bombs exploding over here, in our minds and in our hearts? If not, why not?"