> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.fsm.ink/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# War Stories
- URL: https://www.fsm.ink/war-stories/
- Published: 2025-08-01T17:00:27.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-03T17:52:17.000Z
- Author: Isabel Dorn
- Tags: Poetry, #Import 2026-08-03 09:59

*by Isabel Dorn*

I’ve been reading about what happened in Vietnam,  
he said, patting the thick tome of knowledge  
as he leaned on the library table, face flushed  
with the exhilaration of war stories and weed smoke,  
grinning down at me in anticipation  
of my sweet, approving smile.  
  
Oh, my clever American boy,  
tell me a tale of my people’s war.  
Let me watch you with doe eyes  
and amuse you with my naivete.  
I’m built like my mother, small and fragile -

like the hand grenades  
that you romanticize when you dream  
of a resistance you will never see  
of a sacrifice you will never pay.  
  
My blood runs orange with the flames of war  
where poison rained upon my shore  
and birthed the rage of three million ghosts

but of course, my dear hero, you still know better,  
because last night you got high and read Uncle Ho’s letters

and somehow forgot  
that a poet must learn to wage war.

Oh, my silly American boy,  
I’ll tell you a tale of my people’s war.  
Watch me with poor lustful eyes  
and amuse me with your naivete.

> Isabel Dorn (she/her) is a graduate student who uses poetry to examine the complexities of intersectionality and coming of age in the 21st century. As a Vietnamese American woman, she sees writing as a powerful tool for social justice and strives to create more visibility for underrepresented groups with her work.