Sedimentary Layers Of War

~Deana J. Tavares ©️2024

A war isn’t over

When the last bomb has dropped

Its only beginning 

When soldiers become cops

Civilians

Mothers and fathers

The war lives inside them

Unless 

They were martyrs

War like a garment 

Its dyes seep into souls

Into next generations

Some horrors

Untold

Violent threads

They are woven 

From beginning to end 

Fear

Paranoia 

And anger 

Seamlessly blur

They blend 

Words like grenades

Too powerful to diffuse

A light switch that flickers 

Revealing 

What’s bruised 

Whether fatigues

Or just pigtails

Everyone becomes the enemy 

Indiscriminate violence

Under layers

Sedimentary