Child Of War

A rather dark poem. Poetry isn't my forte, please excuse me.

Oh, child of war,

            What lullaby do you sing,

when all you recall,

            is the sound of screams?

 

Oh, child of war,

            The bullet in your breast,

is all you have of,

            your mother’s finale rest.

 

Sad, bloody child,

            you have no innocence left,

because your brother before you,

            plunged a knife into his own chest.

 

Sad, lonely child,

            you’re brother knew best,

for when they found you,

            they gave you a test.

 

Found to be decent,

            in the ways of you’re father,

they will not allow you,

            a son or a daughter.

 

They put on your skin,

             a bleeding brand,

to use you in any way,

            that they can.

 

“Follow not in my footsteps,”

            war whispers to you,

you look at your father,

            and know not what to do.

 

Now, poor, small child,

laying still, growing cold,

in the arms of your father,

            a warrior of old.

 

Find peace tiny child,

            for your mother’s arms await,

it is time for you to go,

             to a very different place.

Author's Note

Please excuse any grammatical errors and anything you find offencive. Thank you for reading.

Reviews

[emmah]

this is such a sensitive ode to a child of war, told so softly, like a murmur in the ear...its heartbreaking. it tells a distressing and sad tale - of loss, destruction, devastation - in the most tender expression. the loss of innocence, being witness to unfathomable acts of violence, being a child in a war torn land, watching one's family die in front of one's eyes, being caught in a past or a present so dark that there really is no direction or light to follow...experiences and emotions that i cannot even begin to imagine the intensity of, as a reader, are brought out in the softest of expressions. its a very moving verse, one that overwhelms not only with its story but also with the simplicity and subtlety with which it is told.

[FaytheFey]

I meant to put this in my mind at midnight, but oh well.

[azlamalo]

sad. good poem