this diary is dedicated to all who suffer because of war
we love and support our troops, just as we love and support the Iraqi people – without exception, or precondition, or judgment
we have no sympathy for the devil
image and poem below the fold
(T)he night before her husband’s funeral, Katherine Cathey lies on an air mattress in front of the flag-draped coffin. Before he went to Iraq, they were married in a civil ceremony, and planned a church wedding when he returned. They hadn’t planned on a return like this, and now she listens to music they had picked for the wedding. She insisted on spending that final night next to his body.
from Chris Maynard’s text at BagNewsNotes
You Are My Sister
by Antony and the Johnsons
with Boy George
You are my sister, we were born
So innocent, so full of need
There were times we were friends but times I was so cruel
Each night I’d ask for you to watch me as I sleep
I was so afraid of the night
You seemed to move through the places that I feared
You lived inside my world so softly
Protected only by the kindness of your nature
You are my sister
And I love you
May all of your dreams come true
We felt so differently then
So similar over the years
The way we laugh the way we experience pain
So many memories
But theres nothing left to gain from remembering
Faces and worlds that no one else will ever know
You are my sister
And I love you
May all of your dreams come true
I want this for you
They’re gonna come true (gonna come true)
a personal note: During my recent conversation with pyrrho, I noted that the images and poems for these diaries sometimes come together in spontaneous and unanticipated ways. The fact of the internets just accelerates the serendipity.
Today’s diary is a perfect example.
Last night during some quiet time at work, I was catching up on Michael Shaw’s outstanding blog, BagNewsNotes, when I came across this December 9th entry by Chris Maynard:
In the 2006 World Press Photo competition for best news photographs of 2005, Todd Heisler of the Rocky Mountain News won first place for “People In The News: Stories” with his essay “Final Salute,” about a group of Marines who deal with the families of Colorado Marines killed in action. The work also won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography. Heisler spent a year with the detail.
And so today’s photo.
My initial plan was to simply post the photos. The images, and the accompanying story, (19-page pdf file) are so powerful that it seemed impossible to do anything but detract from their intensity by trying to come up with a poem, lyric, or commentary.
I was looking at the photos and half-listening to PigRadio, my favorite online station, when today’s song came on. It cut through me like a knife.
A quick Google led directly to the artists and lyrics.
Today’s diary wrote itself.
I encourage you to follow the links to Chris’ post at the Bag, to the full Rocky Mountain News story (pdf), and to photographer Todd Heisler’s site.
