They unloaded the dead and maimed right before our eyes
They washed out the blood, we loaded our ruck’s and then took to the skies
Over the mountains, villages, and valleys we flew
Where we would land we had not a clue
Bullets are flying, the LZ is hot
We’re leaving this bird whether we like it or not
30 seconds they yelled, Lock N Load and grab your ****
Get ready to go and make it quick
My heart is pumping adrenalin through all of my veins
I run as fast as I can through the lead rain
The noise is tremendous, terror I can’t define
The only reason I survived that day was divine
I kept pulling the trigger and reloading and pulling some more
You do what you have to do, with that I will say no more
We fought from the valleys to the mountain peaks
From house to cave, to car to creek
Dirty and tired and hungry and scared
We slept with our boots on so we were always prepared
Those majestic mountains so steep, so high they kiss the skies
The Hindu Kush has changed so many lives
Up the mountains with heavy loads we trod
Who knew hell was so close to God
Beauty and terror are a strong mixed drink
So we drank it like drunkards and tried not to think
Good men and bad men, Mothers lost son’s
Everyone loses their innocence when they carry guns
Washed in the blood, and baptized by fire
I will never forget those who were called higher
They say blood is thicker than water, well lead is thicker than blood
Brothers aren’t born they’re earned. In the poppy fields, the tears, and the mud
And when I get to heaven to Saint Peter I will tell
Another Paratrooper reporting for duty sir, I spent my time in hell
by Steve Carlsen

Background
The poet of this poem above is named Steve Carlsen. He was born and lived in Dowagiac Michigan. He joined the United States Army in October 2000, where he attended the Infantry Basic Training and Airborne School in Ft. Benning Georgia. He then reported to D Company 1st battalion 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment and was in the 82nd Airborne Division in Ft. Bragg North Carolina. Following, Carlsen was deployed to Kosovo in November 2001 as part of peace keeping operations and carried out combat operations in Afghanistan in December 2002. In the end he discharged from the Army in 2003. He currently attends Southwestern Michigan College where his professor, Dr Michael Collins challenged him to write about his experiences. This poem ("We Slept With Our Boots On") is a product of his experiences of war.

Introduction
The poem was cast at a raid created by the persona and his comrades. They were carrying out combat operations in Afghanistan in December 2002, where they were flying on a plane to a place they "had not a clue". Soldiers making a raid on enemy territory will definitely face resistance from the enemy, thus creating an external conflict whereby both sides try hard to eliminate the other side.The first 2 lines of the poem tells us that the soldier emptied the injured and dead soldiers out of the plane and put the author's paratrooper platoon in it. Then, they were ungraciously and unwillingly dropped right smack in the middle of the fierce battefield, the persona worried and frightened. They sprinted for cover from the deafening bullets, horrified, shooting continuously. They fought on all sorts of terrain, tired and frightened, making sure they were always prepared. It was as if they were in hell but they blocked this thought from their minds. The persona feels that fighting in a war and shooting a gun changes a person forever; no longer is he innocent but battle-scarred, witnessing countless deaths and agony.

Conflict
There are two types of conflict in his poem - Physical and Psychological.

Firstly, the persona was fighting enemies on the front line to capture enemy territory. This inevitably leads to shooting and killing, which are clearly shown. The persona states that "Bullets are flying" and he is constantly shooting, "I kept pulling the trigger". This shows that the persona faces physical obstacles (enemies) which he has to gun down.

Secondly, i can infer that the persona was feeling rather worried and frightened, with his "heart pumping adrenalin through his veins". Furthermore, He uses profanities, emphasizing his sorry state being on the battlefield, with "terror he can’t define". Evidently, he is freaked out by the carnage caused by war, whereby "hell was so close to God".

Climax
The climax was created when the fighting had began in an abrupt manner, without warning the poet was told to aboard the plane and fight their enemies. Amongst the fighting, readers will be compelled towards the poem, sympathetic of the persona and hope for the safety of him and his comrades.