The Union Army Officer who Knew ASL
A Memorial Day Monologue
CHARACTER:
CHESTER, an old soldier, white man, in his 70s. He wears a Union Army officer’s uniform that doesn’t quite fit him anymore.
SETTING:
The year is around 1910 and he is speaking to a group of people, including school children, in a town square, near a memorial statue of a Civil War solider.
CHESTER: Thank you for invitin’ me here today. Your teacher wants me to talk about the War Between the States. I reckon ya wanna hear all about my soldierin’ experiences. There’s a lot I could tell ya, but I won’t. It just wouldn’t be right for children so young to hear about all the God-awful horrors of war. Though you should know, it wasn’t pretty and it wasn’t fun. It was no day at the county fair. Don’t believe anybody who tells ya it was. Even though it was over 40 years ago, I still wake up some mornin’s from nightmares of fierce fightin’ and fear and fratricide and…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have even mentioned all those “F” words…
How many of ya like horses? Good. Good. Let me tell ya ‘bout my horse. Well, my horse was named Lightning. And he was a beauty. Strong and fast. I rode a horse because I was an officer in the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac.
