Killer on the road

What good and bad we do in a life. The scars will always stay with us.

Killer on the road


A Iraqi man sipping  his coffee.
He watches the military trucks drive by.

He look to the sky and murmur a pray.
I will miss you my wife, my children.
He caresses his chest. 
He feel the bomb wrapped tightly against his body.

His eyes are sad and he knows he has no choice.
They killed his brothers.
They came to his country and torn it down to rubble.

He believed in a eye for a eye. 
He will be in paradise soon.
Tears fall from his eyes as he think of his wife sleeping alone.

Soldier with M-16 loaded and ready.
He tells his buddy going to be a good night.
Going to kill a few of them damn  terrorist.


His buddy with a bible in his hand.
Pray to survive the night without firing his guns.
He whisper  I pray I make it through the night.
Please lord keep me safe and let me go home soon.


The city is quiet and the soldier are on alert.
The gunner pass the coffee to his friends.
Tells him my eyes are seeing ghosts again.

 
He watches the morning light began to appear.
He thinks of a mother and father waiting and hoping to see him.
He makes a mental note to call them tomorrow.


A middle age Iraqi man walked down the street in the early morning.
His hands are sweating.
He see two soldiers guarding a government building.

The gunner asks his buddy was the man a ghost in the distance?
He put the bible down and tells him he is real.

The soldier looked at his bible.
Points his weapon at the man.
He raise his hand to halt the Iraqi Man.

The Iraqi man screams out his daughter name and Allah.
Runs toward the soldier.

The soldier aim his M-16 and shoot three rounds into the man chest.

The Iraqi man falls dead.
The soldier goes to him.
Fall and ask god to forgive him.

He open up and see the bomb and photos.
It still don't bring comfort to the soldier.

The soldier sit on his cot.
He hold pictures of a man's wife  with two children.
He wonder why he has to kill this man?

He should of been home tossing a football with his brother or something. 

He cries for the Iraqi he killed.
Old Sargent said he was a hero.
Those terrorist are just killers on the road.
Waiting for us to end their misery.
He bring his bible to his heart and tries to sleep.

The gunner wake him up.
He tells him we are on again tonight.


He puts the bible on the table.
Dresses  into battle gear and walk out of his tent.
He leave the bible tonight on the table.

He had bad dreams.
He dreams he was the killer on the road.

He would do his duty and go home.
He don't talk of God or Jesus anymore.
He just wishes for the blood to leave his hands.

The gunner smile.
He yelled maybe we can kill a few tonight.
His buddy smile and stare at the road.

                      Coyote

                                 

Author's Note

War leave no winner. Vietnam and Korea left scar for a generation of young men and woman. These Wars of today will be the scars for the next 60 years or more.

Reviews

[Angel's Lady]

Your war stories are so poignant to me...my friend over there, I wonder, how many men has he killed? Will those scars affect him when he's home with his wife and kids? I know they will, but will he realize it, or pass on the violence to those he loves....Great write, my friend.

[Kenneth The Poet]

This is an exceptional piece of work. I think some of the grammatical errors need to be fixed, and I think it would help to have one font for easy reading. But the emotional punch is there because actions always have consequences.

Nice job overall!

[Thomas Fitzgerald]

A torrid affair with your past and the relevance it still holds with your presence, i am no one to comment on war of all things, I have never experienced it in real life, so all I can say is my heart las with that man you were, are and will be, a classic born to a world of wrong, my darling you bring tears to my eyes with your words, be dafe and be good.

[quinfinn]

this poem is blatantly aimed not at hatred for one's enemies, but at the terror of war and the futility of useless death. war is not a solution; it is part of the problem.
i fear men won't learn this until the war makers have to actually suffer the casualties of war, then perhaps they will see the error of their ways? beautiful write!

[SpokenWord]

What a way to live and end life then to carry the memories into the afterlife. Do we ever become so numb from living like this that life no longer has any meaning just as the bible was left on the table do we leave also our humanity with it. Stunning work that reaches deep into our hearts.

[Dev]

This write of your's is very deep. It makes one sympathize even more with the people at the war front. War is never easy and is definitely never the solution. High time the world gets that and retreats the troops!

[littlelilypurplebride]

makes me think of my dad and how lost he is in all the pains he's indured in life he isn't the same man anymore scary he's a stranger to me i pray for him every day he is 57 yrs. old love reading your stories thank you for sharing. god bless lily

Applause for selecting such a topic and applause again for putting it through so beautifully ... Great work . I believe this should be featured .

[Heather D]

wow. if someone has trouble sympathizing with the iraqis, let them read this. it will open up the eyes of anyone who has something bad to say about our men overseas. a fantastic poem!

[Alexandra Redgate]

oh my this is very sad but I like it.

[ice]

I rate this poem with those of Sasoon and Owen...war poets must be heard..
Only foul experience, or knowledge of it, can produce such words..
Well done..Coyote...thank you for howling.