BrainLine Military
A Service of brainline.org
Turn off text only
Page Utilities
Sgt. Wells's New Skull
Page 8 of 8
Wells and Bobby couldn't see it from their wheelchairs, but down the hill and through a thicket of trees, the dead are making a final assault on the virgin land of Arlington. The rest of the cemetery feels quiet, tranquil, with tourists walking the rolling hills, through stands of mature trees. But in Section 60, where most of the new arrivals are sent, there is work to do. Three separate crews dig in the mud, lowering concrete vaults into the ground, ready to receive bodies now en route. The Iraq and Afghanistan vets are clustered together in a few rows of headstones. Before them a grassy field, waiting to be filled, stretches east, toward the Pentagon, the Potomac, and beyond.
From Esquire magazine, March 14, 2007. Copyright © 2006 by Brian Mockenhaupt. All rights reserved. www.esquire.com.
Comments [2]
wow that was really strong and well written. the situations are the before reflexes of ptsd (post tramatic stress disorder).
MOVING. We will never be able to show enough gratitude to the men and women who have served in OIF and OEF. As an Army wife myself this hits very close to home. God bless you and keep you.
Dec 29th, 2011 12:10pm