War War
Rent from DeepDyve- War War
in the war between the wars, War B beat War Amoney staking money on the banksthose old riversbut A was ever able: mountains holding
war rope let out, hauled in, coileda waiting snakesteel vat filledsymbol trucks, with drums
we're getting better, our betterangels, wars are smaller, we stayin place to make themsafer to get the better of better not still not well
consider the black boots, the many black bootsnew maps, with hands to match [End Page 64] invisible flags stretched over long . . .ones, that do not count
disarmed without arms withoutwhat they were called to trainedto wanted to what was wanted: themlittle tanks, with guns
gun at the window: burn down the buildingcar won't stop: shoot carrazor board water wire armchild: the cost of doing business
war won when we wonthe war we said oneto go, hold—off we go to playmore war, our fire unfurling
dumb war rash war rush to Brun war mistake war sorrywar but heads held no time to saygood-bye war said good said by and by [End Page 65]
Martha Collins has published seven collections of poetry, most recently Day Unto Day (Milkweed) and White Papers (Pittsburgh UP), as well as three volumes of cotranslated Vietnamese poetry. She is editor-at-large for Field magazine.
