Memorial Day, 2012

Mickey Mouse was on the cover
of a 1950's comic book, smiling like a big cheese.
nearby, a new church stood righteously in the background,
surrounded by asphalt roads and cement sidewalks;
a small yard of grass held three empty crosses.
the little blond boy with an egg-shaped head was
holding the comic book, showing it to his mom with a laugh.
the church had no parking lot for the congregation,
but it was known to be easy to walk the few steps to the door.
the yellow-haired kid would play in the grass, sometimes after school
and before Sunday services when the weather was right.
he would only cry if he fell, tearing his skin, or when
his dad beat him for being too much a boy.
his dad would visit the church wearing a suit and tie,
taking the family to any pew where there was open space.
the wife was in her fancy clothes, too.
organ music would attempt to fill each head with religion.
the young boy would sit between his dad and mom, drawing on a piece of
paper with a pencil.  he would draw simple pictures of airplanes and tanks
engaging in combat, using short black dashes to represent the line of bullets
and bombs leaving one weapon and aiming toward another weapon.
he never drew a picture of Mickey Mouse when he was inside the church.