010 - Half A Man

Digger Smith unfolds through a powerful series of narrative poems that explore the journey of an Australian soldier returning home in the waning days of the Great War. Missing a leg and burdened by the haunting ANZAC eyes—what later conflicts would call The Thousand Yard Stare—Digger grapples with his post-traumatic stress disorder. Despite his own struggles, he dedicates himself to easing the troubles of others, all while battling a deep-seated fear that his amputee status will render him half a man in the eyes of the beloved he left behind. Oh, Digger Smith, how little faith you have in the strength of love... - Summary by Son of the Exiles