The Otherside

A poem written from the perspective of a young soldier during WWI, and his thoughts before he goes over into No Man's Land (I wrote this for a poetry competition at our local legion when I was 15)

The Otherside, by Christina Muldoon

I'm sitting here in the rain, 

waiting for the hour.
Sitting here in the pre-dawn darkness
I look up and see a flower.
It's a tiny thing, only a bud
but a beautiful sight to behold.
Its such a change from all Ive seen,
like shelter from the cold.
As I look at this glory of nature,
my hands begin to quake.
My dread, my anger, my hopelessness hit;
Im not sure how much I can take.

As I sit here in a dank, wet trench,
suddenly, I can't help but wonder...
On the otherside, is there one who thinks this
while all around him goes asunder?
Who is he when he is out of the trench?
How does he live his life?
Like me, does he pray for his children?
Remember when he last kissed his wife?
We're told to hate the Enemy
for we 'know' what he plans to do.
But on the otherside, in another's eyes,
for no reason, am I hated too?

The Devil's clock strikes six AM
and battle cries are sounding.
We jump up out of our cold sanctuaries,
minds racing and hearts pounding.
Something passes through my body,
hot and full of hate.
Then, I see it in front of me:
The beautiful Heavenly Gate.
Before I enter the Kingdom of God,
I turn around to see
the nineteen year old Canadian boy
who has just shot and killed me.
He breaks down next to my body
out of agony and of fear,
and down his youthful cheek
rolls a single, muddy tear.
This is the man I was trained to hate;
he now mourns my death.
He is the one who is holding my hand
as I am taking my last breath.
We are no different, he and I.
After all, we breathe the same air.
And now we shall die as brothers
On this field of death and despair.

Before I go, the last thing I see
is on the Otherside.
Its the bud I saw, a poppy,
mourning us who have just died.

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

This is a perfect Memorial Day poem...we are having that day on Monday...
all the soldiers we lost at the hands of an enemy....
often an unseen enemy but this poem makes me wonder how often this happens.
I have to kill you because you are on the other side, but I am not happy about it....I am sad that I had to do it. It is the irony of war.
This poem is so moving.
j.

[Chrissie Muldoon]

Thank you, Jacob. The self conscious 15 year old (who is still very much alive and well in my soul) is so grateful for your words and insight :) (as is the current 36 year old, lol!)

[Relic]

Your poem is so well written and shows the humanity between both sides. I'm sure many felt the feelings you've described. The flower, so small and insignificant compared to machine guns, tanks, and foxholes - and yet, its symbolism outweighs all of that.

The world has always had wars and always will. Whether for politics, religion, land.... men have always wanted to dominate another. That's sad but an unfortunate reality as peace is always passed up.

For a 15-year-old to write this is amazing.

Great poem. Chrissie.

[Chrissie Muldoon]

Relic, I'm so appreciative of this review. I think the act of war and the act of creativity are both very similar in that both can give us a chance to see a naked truth about the nature of Man.
And something about both world wars always fascinated me as a kid, perhaps because they were so very bloody, and yet we humans somehow refuse to learn our lesson.
The self conscious 15 year old that still resides somewhere in my soul is so grateful for your kind words :)

[Coyote Poetry]

My unit clean-up the bodies at Death Valley in Iraq. We learn. Just men believing they are fighting for righteous men.
"Before I go, the last thing I see
is on the Otherside.
Its the bud I saw, a poppy,
mourning us who have just died."
Me and my soldiers. We sat with dying Iraq soldiers. We gave them morphine and we pray they went to a better place. Your poetry powerful, honest and worthwhile. I have said often. No winner in war. Thank you dear Chrissie for sharing the outstanding and needed poetry.
Coyote

[Chrissie Muldoon]

I appreciate kind words at any point, but from a veteran, they strike harder.
Thank you for being so open and trusting in order to share--- even just a little bit--- your time in Iraq. Such a massive sacrifice from ordinary soldiers who wish to just live their own lives, and one that is asked by those who just want to flex muscle, and sees no conflict themselves.
Thank you again for reading, and I wish you all the best in your continued recovery and life as a civilian

[Coyote Poetry]

You are welcome dear Chrissie. Most soldiers become anti-war. We had saw in war. No-one wins in war. Only the young pay the price for old men hate.

[Chris]

This IS a good poem. Emotionally raw, relevant to many. Of course - pointed in opinion. as it needed to be - in your author's mind.

[Chrissie Muldoon]

Thanks so much Chris. It really is a heartbreak that though I've written it to take place during WWI, how relevant it is even today (just as you said). Thanks for reading.