APO 96225

This poem reminded me a great deal of "The Things They Carried." The two works have very similar themes. Both discuss those left behind during a war and their response to it. Especially in APO 96225, those left behind are portrayed as extremely naive. The soldier's parents think that they can handle the cruelty and reality of war, but they can't (or refuse to) comprehend it. I think the author is trying to illustrate the differences in the realities faced by soldiers and by civilians. I don't think you can truly understand the terrors of war unless you have seen them.
These worlds are completely different and its hard for occupants of one to understand the realities of the other.