C. Douglas Caffey Poem "I Saw A Veteran"

I Saw An Old Veteran

Beside the road

he sat

with an overgrown beard

and a strange looking

hat.

The sign he held,

well, you know what it

said.

"Will work for food",

it read!

And beside him sat a

tired-looking

dog.

The dog was jet black

with forlorn

eyes.

But you could tell that

he was in

partnership with

the old vet,

as both sat under the

canopy of darkened

skies.

All of his earthly goods

were confined to

one duffel

bag.

Tied to his dog's wounded

leg was a bloody

dirty

rag!

Of course I stopped

beside the

road

to talk a bit with him

and to learn that he

carried a

heavier load

within.

Both the vet and his

dog were

on the friendly

side

as they sat awaiting

a ride

to somewhere

down the

road,

either East or West

North or

South,

it made no difference

as long as they

had food for

the

mouth.

Where were you in the

war,

I said?

It was in Nam

as a tunnel

rat,

as he unconsciously

raised his

hat.

I could see from his

sunken eyes that

I needed to

change

the topic,

for in Nam their hot

tropic

and underground

tunnels

could rob one of his

mind,

leaving a tunnel rat

blind

to the reality of

his surroundings.

He told me that he needed

a drink...

and I knew it was not

water

for his bottle was

full.

Now, let me ask you this

dear reader;

what would you do for

this Nam vet and his

best friend,

a tired old black dog

which tagged

along?

If you had been a tunnel

rat

in Nam would you be

a friend

to alcohol,

no matter the

brand?

Before you answer that

hard question

take another look at this

unkempt pair,

for crawling through

a jungle

underground, one longs for

fresh air

from the outside world

where claustrophobia

does not hem

one in.

Would you be a friend to

Old Granddad

or to

cheap wine of any

kind?

Would you "take this pair

In?"

Give the old black dog

a bath, rub him

down

dry him off

feed him with a bowl

of "Kibbles & Bits",

and give him a name

that fits!

And what would you do

with the Nam

vet,

who hasn't died

yet?

Perhaps take him to the

VA

where he could stay

without

pay,

for there the health providers

could care for him,

clean him up, find him some clothes,

feed him well, tend to

his health,

and whatever else

only God

knows!

Then you could bring his dog

to the VA grounds

where the two

could meet

again

as they make the rounds.

Now, we both know that the scene

outlined above

will never come to

pass,

for old vets and old dogs

are an unseemly

sight,

so let them be free to

wander both day

and night.

You may find them sharing

a cardboard

box

under some unknown

bridge,

but still keeping the sign

which says

"Will work for food!"

So I shall feed them today

and send them on their

way

down the road of

tomorrow,

where you can find the two

beside the road

of "Sorrow!"

My heart breaks for an old vet,

though the war be o'er,

he isn't home

yet!

I am an old vet too,

not of Nam

but WWII,

but I have a dog named

Muggs,

who welcomes all my

hugs.

We both do not work

for food,

but have a nice warm

home

where we don't have to

roam

down some strange road

of

Tomorrow!

Better to have PTSD

for sixty years

than to have crawled through

those awful

tunnels, in a jungle called

Nam

and to have an only friend,

a black dog named

Sam!

C. Douglas Caffey

58th Wing of

the 509th

Air Photo Unit,

Army Air Corps.