THE WALL OF FACES

You were a star hockey player for Coventry High School. Like any other teenager you worked at a fast food restaurant called Burger Chef in West Warwick. You were with the marine infantry in Vietnam when you were killed on June 23, 1969. You were so young, only 19 years old when you sacrificed your life for our country. You showed great bravery and courage towards your country as you gave your life. I greatly appreciate this undefined courage you showed your country. Your memory will live on forever.

I recently attended a Leadership Conference at Coventry High School- your alma mater. Although the students are different, I imagine that most are really the same- encountering the same academic and social problems that you did. Some of them probably even work at Burger King, a renamed Burger Chef. That conference really opened my eyes to the world. Maybe if everyone could attend a conference such as that, there would be no need for war. Maybe you would still be here today, coaching hockey instead of playing it. Thank you for fighting for my unattainable dream.

A Call to Arms

The sun has just risen, red as blood
No flower is left hidden in the shade.
Something is wrong, there are no screams;
No blood, no death, no guns to be seen.
The clear blue sky is full of birds,
There is no smog at all.
The serenity of this scene seems strange;
Where is the noise, the fear, the hatred?
Why do I see green, beauty all around?
Others have risen, made family in peace
We have nothing in common but wonder and hope.
I hear music; quiet, pastoral in sound
People are singing, dancing with joy.
We are joined by animals, both great and small
No longer threatened by the presence of humans-
And we, mankind are no longer shaken by them.
A crash of thunder alerts me to the sound of rain
The water from the tarnished tap tastes of copper.
Television brings only news of death.
My peaceful vision? The time was never; our dream is now.

- Kris Carlson
Burrillville High School
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