Mayaguez Madness

Saw a program the other night ~

and realized I'd forgotten some of the details ~

Brief glimpses of things filtered thru my mind

Cambodia ~ a ship ~ hostages ~ a rescue mission ~ Marines ~

and three young men who were left behind.

Kho Tang ~ the island ~ one month

after the ending of the War ~

and heavy fire

and the crackling sound of helicopter crews

talking and shuttling back and forth ~

Are your men on the beach?

are they ready for extraction?

We are ready ~ we are on the beach ~

and then, toward the end,

for the last "extractions", some men

were so far off the beach as to be in the

water ~ and all was tense ~

Is that all, their saviors crackled?

Are all your men accounted for?

Yes, came the answer

we're good to go .....

but they were not.

There were dead Marines

heaped like litter on the island,

destined to be left behind

forever in the very spot

in which they died,

and 3 living men, who would soon

join their deceased brothers ~

and I would later hear

that two were floating in the sea

and one was wrapped in plastic

after being "questioned" ~

what were their last hours like ~

how do the leaders feel now?

They who miscalculated, in the madness

of the time?

Do they dream of them ~

what scenes pass thru the survivor's mind

when he thinks of those

he left behind?

I'll bet that unlike me, he remembers details ~

All that time, unknown to them,

the hostages of the Mayaguez

were safe and sound.

God's blessing upon

those Marines who survived,

and those who fought and died,

and those left behind one day in May

on someone else's island ground.

©Christina 5~00

Webmaster: Thurman P. Woodfork

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