Veteran of Foreign War

In a court room in the clouds above unloved
a solemn judge fumes in the dark looking
for his gavel; I think he dropped it
in the ocean where it was
swallowed by a shark
the kind that tip
boats over
just for fun
the rain comes down
without cessation to wash
away the blood of a nation
spilled on battle fields where they
did not belong and nothing was regained
because nothing had been lost; yes my heart
goes out for every veteran begging in the street
who is still wondering what master they were serving
in the heat of battle that day they killed mankind and left
me for dead when I fell through a crack in time and landed
here in a place I know not and don’t belong waiting for the dawn