Uncle Josef took the blankets
from the barracks after
basic training,
laundered them,
pressed them on the mangle,
pinned the pattern
of his prewar business suit
to the flat beige rectangles
that had sheltered so many
young bodies bound
for so many wars,
and with his tailor’s shears
sliced himself a three-button jacket,
two pairs of pleated pants, with matching vest
and enough left over
for a homberg, fedora, jaunty beret.

All this because of skill, supply,
demand for young men
elsewhere.