The World Makes Liars Of Us All.

Noises And Smells, Those Can Bring Back Powerful Memories. I Remember When I Was Going To School One Fourth Of July, And There Were A Lot Of Fireworks Going Off. I Knew That I Was In Richmond. I Knew That I Was A College Student. But I Thought People Were Shooting At Me.

I Know That The Writers I Read And Admire All Have An Influence On My Work, But Trying To Determine To What Degree Any Particular Piece Of Input Changes The Way I Think About Writing Seems Counterproductive.

I Understood That 'the Yellow Birds' Would Be A Peculiar Representation Of The Experience Of Being At War. I Intended It To Be So.

I Think A Lot Of The Guys I Know And A Lot Of People I've Talked To, What They Want Is Very Often What Most People Want, A Kind Of Simple Life, A Livelihood, A Family, People Who Care About Them, People They Can Care About. I Think Vets On The Whole Want The Same Things That Everybody Else Does.

I Guess I Find The Boundaries Between Poetry And Prose To Be Somewhat Permeable.