To the Woman Who Taught Me the Value of Flowers

Aug 31, 2023

When my nightmares arrive and take possession

Of my brain and spirit and body and life

And the brake pedal in the car I press over and over

Does not stop the vehicle and I see nothing through the windshield,

Or, in memories buried deeply 50 years ago,

When criminals would jump me for my paper route money

And it is me alone against four or twelve or twenty of them

Because they never had the courage to attack alone.

I punch with my fists, strike with my elbows,

Use my back to toss them, but they keep coming,

Now enraged that I have successfully broken their attack

And all I can do is moan as the physical pain reminds me

That I only have moments before they may win…

But the voice of an angel keeps calling to me from somewhere,

“Bruce, it’s only a dream! Wake up! It’s only a dream!

And salvation arrives with waking…

Oh, Thank God! I now know it was only a dream.

I reach across to hold the wife next to me,

The one who taught me the value of flowers

That I never saw when growing up in the city

The way she did growing up on an orchard in West Virginia.

Her calm and grace that has tamed my child trauma

And street violence so I could have a good life

With sons and grandsons who call me “Poppy”

And educate me about innocence, grace and beauty

Each time I hold the two-month-old in my arms

And watch a creature only God can co-create with us.

I want all my Brother Veterans to share that wake up.

I want them all to know the peace Christ can give.

I want them all to have a wife who knows,

But more importantly can share, the value of flowers.

I want them to reconnect with the female imperative,

Staunch the nightmares, smile, laugh, and share their experiences,

So, they can protect, love, and lead the feminine world

In the way only the gentle masculine warrior can.

August 28, 2023