Oh God they are coming again, please help me, I don't
want to die  

They are all over the place, coming up the hill, 
coming to kill me  

I'm screaming and shaking with fear but I aim carefully
at them below and fire, over and over 

That one is coming right for me, he is looking directly 
at me...firing at me...got to get him 

I aim carefully and fire and his body jerks violently...
but he keeps coming 

I fire again and he drops to his knees...but he gets up 
and keeps coming at me...how can he still be coming??

He is almost to me...I fire again and he falls again but 
he crawls, dragging his body forward...he finally stops 
and doesn't move again 

The attack is over; they disappear into the trees...I'm 
still alive...there is dead all over that hillside 

I look out of my foxhole and look into the eyes of him... 
he is staring at me with a grim on his face...in death he
is grinning at me

 For the next two days the fight rages on...every time I 
look over the rim of my foxhole I see that grinning face...
it won't go away 

I live, despite heavy losses, my Scouts live

I'm out of Vietnam, out of the Army...home in Minnesota...
working during the day and going to college at night 

I'm driving east on Highway 13...on my way to a college 
class...it is a nice dark winter night

Something tells me to look in the rearview mirror...I do, 
and I am startled beyond belief...he is in my back seat 
looking at me, with that same haunting grin! 

I drive into the center median, stop and sob...soon a 
Highway Patrolman stops to see if I am ok 

I tell him yes, that I tried to avoid hitting a deer...
I drive up onto the highway and away...soon heading home

Why was he there...did he come to haunt me? 

He never came again but in the nightmares I often still 
see him grinning at me in his death.

This story is part of the Mental Health Awareness story collection.
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