By Britta Reque-Dragicevic This first appeared in Britta's blog, "Life After War" and is republished with the author's Continue Reading
Veterans
The Fear
I smelled it, the first time.The stink of Fear, underscored by the whites of his eyesIn the dead of night, We Men sent to take him-His children Continue Reading
The Dilemma of the Enemy
Since childhood, I loved the tales of wars past and present. In my adolescence, I was obsessed with the fables of Vietnam beyond any Continue Reading
Reply to Hannah
By Clay D You ask to keep the faith; I ask how could we? We are thrown to the wolves because we are dad, a product of toxic masculinity of the 90s Continue Reading
The Switch
72 hrs, give or take, is the breaking point where the lack of sleep catches me—embracing me like a lost lover whose touch can ease the pain. The line Continue Reading
They Do Not Want to Understand the Wars We Fight in Their Name
The questions are almost always delivered by the young without guilt. They ask them in classrooms, living rooms, car rides, anywhere and everywhere it Continue Reading
Battling PTS: Choose Not to be a Statistic
A couple of years ago I was diagnosed with PTSD, I knew something in my head wasn't right, but I refused to do anything about it. Big tough Army guy, Continue Reading
The Wars of Others
The wars of others douse gasoline on the fire hardly controllable. The urge to fight shared in the neurotic texts and conversations with the others. Continue Reading
Living with Survivor’s Guilt
It was a pleasant September day in 2005. The Praetorians were getting ready for their patrol. This time, we had another squad with us. Out of respect Continue Reading
Combat Vets: On Carrying Violence Over into Civilian Life
By Britta Reque-Dragicevic This first appeared in Britta's blog, "Life After War" and is republished with the author's Continue Reading
Confronting Tall Poppy Syndrome
Every breath becomes labored under the pressure. There appears to be no beginning or end of this vast desert. Every step is labored under the Continue Reading
You Ain’t Got to Lie to Kick It
My old field training officer (FTO), now friend and former Marine, once looked at a guy and said, “you ain’t got to lie to kick it.” This man was a Continue Reading