bereavement kit…

sitting
alone
her
eyes
darkened
lines of
too many memories
beneath them
chain smoking
as if such clouds
could bring her
closer to god
she
a one-time soldier
now draped
in a tattered flag
blood stained
the stench of death
lingering in every fiber
so
another drink
to kill war’s nighmares
another cigarette
to mask the stench
living
only
to wait
for
the next
drink
while wondering
who really
died
that
day