"Achilles' Grief"
By Ben Fortier
Mourning without cessation
A foreign feeling
Of dejection
Emotional deterioration
The inner world
Like fabric, rips
Threads of being
Languish in the void
Will I bury them
And move on?
Or will tragedy beseech me
Clouding the journey
Until the fog
Envelopes
Forever?
Native Rhode Islander and proclaimed Renaissance Man, Iraq vet He is the author of Stones of the Wooded Valley and The Silent Whispers of Omens. His latest book PHANTOMS, covers his deployment to Iraq in '06-'07. Ben is the 2024 recipient of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s Robert A. Gannon award for original poetry dealing with Marine Corps Life.
What’s happening at VetRep…
Mark your calendars for May 15th, and join Hudson Valley Gives in support of VetRep, as we create a program for jobs and apprenticeships. View our page here.
Listen to our latest episode with Lois Hicks-Wozniak on the Savage Wonder Podcast, where we interview incredibly talented musicians, artists, writers, and theater professionals, who also happen to be veterans.
Join us at the Parlor for a performance of Noel Coward’s Private Lives. Generally regarded as one of the most sophisticated, entertaining plays ever written, Private Lives is the story of Elyot and Amanda, once married and now honeymooning with new spouses at the same hotel, who meet by chance, and hilarity (as well as passion, anger, romance and aggravation) ensues. A uniquely humorous play, it has boasted numerous successful Broadway runs with stars like Coward himself, Laurence Olivier, Tallulah Bankhead, Gertrude Lawrence, Tammy Grimes, Richard Burton, and Elizabeth Taylor. The evening will open with veteran playwright Gavin Kayner's ten-minute play TWO PERSONS SINGULAR and then be followed by an intermission. Seating is limited and shows sell out fast, so get your tickets here.