Disarming Mekong Delta

By LindaAnn LoSchiavo

They're white as rice that wasn't thrown at us. 
His stack of letters (nineteen-sixty-eight's 
Mail, barely legible) was saved, penned straight,   
Not far from enemy lines.  Infamous:   
The Mekong Delta, toured by curious   
Loved ones, prepared to demonstrate   
Our grief, disarm now, do what liberates,   
Surrendering to the incongruous.  

His presence here seems reconstructed as   
Those letters fold my world to paper wings.   
Why do brave words demand laments? I meant   
To re-read, gather them for warmth – whereas   
I light a match, red breast flames releasing   
Angels illegible in their ascent.

****

Native New Yorker LindaAnn LoSchiavo, an award-winning member of British Fantasy Society, HWA, SFPA, and The Dramatists Guild, released three titles in 2024: "Always Haunted: Hallowe'en Poems" (Wild Ink), "Apprenticed to the Night" (UniVerse Press), and "Felones de Se: Poems about Suicide" (Ukiyoto).
Next: "Cancer Courts My Mother" (Prolific Pulse Press, 2025) and "Vampire Verses" (Twisted Dreams Press, 2025). Book accolades include the Elgin Award, Chrysalis BREW Project Awards, The World’s Best Magazine’s Book of Excellence Award, and Spotlyts Story Award.