Heroes
Dream of faraway mountains wild
and warriors, whose hearts beat sound,
the sweet laugh of a grateful child.
Remember not the bloody ground
or your lifeless friends that surround.
The ghost of years, went by too fast,
embrace these memories unwound.
Lost in the echoes of the past
The face of that girl who smiled
the night before you left, war bound.
Oh, how her fair blue eyes beguiled,
within their depths you might have drowned.
Not to be, gone before you found,
swallowed by a battlefield vast
and the noise of mortar inbound.
Lost in the echoes of the past
They molded strangers and compiled
that bond of brothers, so profound.
Confront that enemy reviled
when booming battle drums resound,
to conclude with death, all around.
Lingering questions never asked
in your mind, they forever hound.
Lost in the echoes of the past
Dream of your home, that hallowed ground,
your long journey ended at last.
Let friends and family expound,
Lost in the echoes of the past
Be Afraid of the Dark 
I dislike the word, heroes as applied to soldiers. Yes, they were courageous but also terrified in the face of battle. Why else do so many have PTSD? The priority shd be to educate children from an early age that aggression is wrong and negotiation the best way to address differences of opinion.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Irina's Poetry Corner and commented:
A beautiful tribute to WWI heroes by A.F. Stewart
LikeLike