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A few lines in this poem began in journals kept by a young Aviation Electrician’s Mate during a cruise on an aircraft carrier through the Mediterranean heading toward the Suez Canal, circa 2007. In form the poem honors nostalgia for a naval expedition, contrasts the aesthetics of nationalism against nature, and salutes those working to rebuild The House of Wisdom.
The poem is arranged in three verses. The first verse is in the form of a flag. The second flows freely and it includes blasphemous thoughts on religion. The third is circumspect, set in the smoke pit, and it takes the form of light from a sunrise (or sunset) reflecting off waves in the Persian Gulf.
Spangles Wave On reads in a series of choppy lines, evoking waves, and it expands on phrases that explore the mighty emotions involved in a sea passage.
Brave Bombs Under Blasphemous Jets assumes the form of an F/A-18 fighter jet to contrast ancient stories of war and adventure with our modern conflicts.
While The Sun Also Sets adds some discordant textures to the sights, the sounds, the smells of cruising on an aircraft carrier.