Freedom Scars

by Cleo Deloner

When children see me, they stare
When adults see me, they look away
The evidence of sacrifice is etched in my skin

I wear the scars of freedom
Where my leg used to be
Where my arm used to be
Where my eye used to be
Where my old flesh used to be
Yes, I wear the scars of freedom

When my loved ones see me
They have the look of pity
When my spouse sees me
They have the look of burden
The evidence of sacrifice is etched in my skin

I wear the scars of freedom
Sitting in my wheelchair
Limping along with my cane
Underneath my Yankee’s ball cap
Yes, I wear the scars of freedom

When my Veteran brothers and sisters see me
They have the look of understanding
The look of compassion
The look of knowledge
The look of guilt
The evidence of sacrifice is etched in my skin

I wear the scars of freedom
From where I
Bled in the sand
Bled in the mountains
Bled in the jungles
Bled on that shore
Bled in the streets
Yes, I wear the scars of freedom

When I see myself
I have the look of loss
The look of pain
The look of fatigue
I look upon the evidence of sacrifice that is etched in my skin

And I know
It doesn’t matter what is seen by them
But what is felt by me
I feel honor
I feel pride
I feel whole

For I fought hard for you, and you, and you
Earning the scars of freedom
Yes, I wear YOUR scars of freedom

Cleo DeLoner
18, Feb, 2016
1414-1442 hrs.

_____

Dedicated to ALL our wounded WARRIOR brothers and sisters

And a few I know personally…

Mallory Dinkel, Kuwait
Anthony Farina, Iraq
Robert Bruce, Afghanistan
Ronald Tabor, Vietnam

#FreedomScars
____________________________________
This first appeared in The Havok Journal on March 24, 2019.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.