Longtiene, 1969

a poem by Mike Byers

This month on Acoustic Blend we are remembering the life of Mike Byers, who passed last May. Mike was known by many as a Renaissance Man, and among many other things hosted Acoustic Blend for a time. Below you'll hear a short segment featuring the Mike’s poem “Longtiene, 1969” — which was incorporated into the song “Faces From the Book of the Fallen,” written and performed by Joe Peters.

You can hear the full tribute to Mike next Saturday, May 10th at 8pm on WBAA, streaming online at wbaa.org or over the airwaves (105.9 FM and AM 920).

---

The first day, I remember
Grey fog and wet, green karst;
With strangers' mail in two red sacks
Standing on a silent ramp.
And later, in a shadowed house
They talked, with fire and scotch
Of women, towns and battles I had never seen.
I flew with them;
And laughed and fought and feared
With men made quickly brothers
By a war we never thought to win
Fools and heros in that place,
But most were simply men
Whose names are gone from me
In smoke and flame,
Like fired rockets.

“Longtiene, 1969” by Mike Byers