Too Hard To Say Goodbye (poem) by David Lee Thompson on AuthorsDen

Reviewed on February 21, 2022

I appreciate this piece of writing, David Lee. This language radiates sensitivity and awareness. That image of shoes mailed from boot camp being held close and dearly is embedded in your writing, along with �Sometimes love for family cuts to the bone�. . . and reveals much about who you are. With such sensitivity, that kind of separation would have two people in that kind of mother-son pain. Good for you* ~~ the other Diana

Reviewed by JoAnne Cromp (Reader)

Reviewed on January 20, 2022

My husband was special forces Calvary Scout Recon Army during Vietnam era and was seriously hurt in training in a 577 tank however.Thank you David for this beautiful, heartfelt poem and thank you so much for your service. I salute you

Reviewed by Diana Wiles

Reviewed on January 18, 2022

I was immensely moved by your words David�
and your decision to spare your Mother the
trauma of saying Goodbye to her beloved son.
It was the action of a truly loving and caring son
who knew his Mom so well..
How utterly heart breaking that decision must have been for
you..but a reflection also of what a wonderful Mother
she was, to have raised a son as selfless as you�
Your bond is eternal�

Your eyes on your photo are so very revealing�I wonder what
you were thinking when it was taken�

A poem that needs to be heard�War is about so much more
than most of us, who have never been in your position imagine�

Your carefully selected words say it all, and what isn�t said is deeply felt�

Diana�🍃

Reviewed by Ronald Hull

Reviewed on January 16, 2022

You're right about the bond between mother and son. While I didn't go off to war, and she complained when I left California because she wanted to "visit you there," she welcomed my leaving for long periods of time in faraway places. Mom knew that I would always return. But in 2011 when I came to see her briefly for a couple of days, she cried and said, "I'll never see you again." She was right. I tried and failed a few times. Couldn't even get the family to set up a video connection for her on FaceTime or Skype. But she called me on her TTY phone weekly for a while until about 2018, giggling as we talked like a schoolgirl.

You have clearly pointed out the fear that a mother has of losing her son to war.

Ron

Reviewed by E Phillips

Reviewed on January 14, 2022

Great poem, David. You have summarized the pain that falls on families so honestly. Glad you survived. Class of 1965.

Reviewed by Michelle Mills

Reviewed on January 11, 2022

Heartbreaking, poignant and powerful. You're the kind of son that many moms wish they had. A loving servant, a child who puts the needs of others before your own.

Reviewed by La Belle Rouge Poetess Of The Heart

Reviewed on January 11, 2022

David, you are a good son. Your poem brought back memories to me of standing in icy rain, watching my husband leave on a bus to catch his flight to Vietnam. A historic poem of power.

Reviewed by T. Wignesan

Reviewed on January 10, 2022

Hullo David Lee Thompson! I commiserate totally having known a few in your situation. To be put in a situation to placate other people's folly is a predicament that no one can justify. The guys I know who made it back lead completely broken lives, each in his own way trying haplessly to patch up the splintered parts.

Do, please, see two excerpts from my "...the smell of piss and shit in his pants", if you can bear to be reminded of Hell...

Every good wish for 2022. Wignesan