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								| The Hold |  |  |  
					| Caught in the coils of PTSD, Secret thoughts clasped 
					close to me
 And locked forever deep inside;
 Is it some 
					special sort of pride?
 
 I don't think you can 
					understand
 What sears my being like a brand
 Etched 
					layers deep into my soul,
 Put there by War's red hot 
					coals.
 
 Lurid nightmares that end in tears
 Conjured 
					up from deep-seated fears
 Living in memories decades old...
 Haunting stories I have never told.
 
 Dismaying, 
					shifting changes of mood,
 From laughter to a dark-hued 
					brood,
 Cause loved ones to shy away,
 Uncertain how 
					I'll react today.
 
 And many times I've stepped back
 From that abyss, so deep and black,
 To resume my life and 
					carry on
 Yet still wishing that I had gone
 
 Down 
					toward the beckoning release,
 That enticing promise of 
					Final Peace.
 But something holds me in this life,
 Despite the pain and internal strife.
 
 It is the love 
					that I can see
 Deep in your eyes reaching out to me...
 Embracing me with the eternal hope
 That, if I can learn 
					to really cope
 
 With the demons that beleaguer me,
 The day will come when we both are free
 To bask in the 
					warmth of our love's sun
 United together forever as one.
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					| By 
					Thurman P. Woodfork Copyright 2005
 Listed 
					March 12, 2011
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