Peter Pan Must Die

They are toys-r-us kids lost
on an island called Neverland—
lost in Afghanistan—with
pop guns and little plastic
swords and bombs. Lost boys,
lost army men, lost children,
fighting pirates offshore.
Lost war, lost in Iraq—
the never-ending fantasy.
Lost fairytale. Where's the
magic carpet? Where's the
pixie dust? Tinker Bell was wounded
by snipers during an unmanned
drone fly-by. The croc is on time.
Tic toc, tic toc.

Peter Pan must die. Let
the pied piper of youth be remembered well.
But before we have peace, the poppies
must lie flat. More widows must cry.
More mothers and brothers, more
girlfriends and fiancées and lovers
must cry. Peter Pan must finally become
Peter the man. R. I. P.

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 "Peter Pan Must Die," along with "And God . . . ," was published in the Summer 2011 issue of Pudding Magazine.  Pudding is a hard-copy press. To get a copy of the Summer 2011 issue or subscribe to the magazine, please go here.

Eric