Duffel Bags by Garett Reppenhagen

As I leave my metal box, that I have called home for the last year, I carry two duffel bags. The first is full of the gear and clothing that has offered me survival and protection. The other bag is harder to see with the uncompassionate eye. I have filled the second wih guilt. The shame for the part I have played in this campaign in Iraq. It is more useless than the first. However, it is a burden I must carry. . . .

That duffel will be dragged around with me perhaps for the rest of my life. From home to home. Town to town. Until I am too old to lift it. Then I will lay down beside the large duffel and crawl inside and die.

So when you see a soldier returning home with a duffel bag at a bus stop, an airport baggage claim, or being stuffed into a taxi, think about what is inside the bag. It might be rolled clothing of browns and tans. Or, it might be dark secrets that he will never reveal to his family.

The soldier will not put his burden upon you. But if you feel any responsibllity for the weight of it you may carry it for a while if it would make you feel more decent. And if you forced him to open it perhaps every one can take a little bit of it to relieve the strain of those who served. It might be a reminder that we are all at fault for America's role in the violence of the Middle East. However, a soldier is trained to sacrifice. He will take the burden to the grave or make a grave out of it if he must.



Garett Reppenhagen. Iraq. February 6, 2005

From "Warrier Writers. Move, Shoot and Communicate". A collection of creative writing by members of Iraqi Veterns Against The War. Edited by Lovella Calica, 2007.