Estar Roto

Estar Roto, a Spanish term, means to be broken, to be ripped, to be torn, to be worn out and was an early term for PTSD. The military uniform hides the physical and mental damage of the returned soldier. The flattened deconstruction of something material can be shocking when one sees what remains. The same can be said for what remains of the injured soldier returning to civilian life. A US army slogan was, 'Every man has his breaking point.' Florence(Lesley's grandmother) knew war fought in European trenches was her husband's breaking point. As Florence ironed her husband's military shirt she saw he was not the same person who went to war. He returned changed; a different person. He had been broken, ripped, torn and worn out. He was a shell of himself. He was Estar Roto.