Confessions of a Soldier

A letter from the battlefield

 

Orders came swiftly
And thrust upon the battlefield was I
Shouts of “Charge! Charge!”
Echoing still, throughout my mind

 

Blinded by the masses
Of my fellow men
Who seemed to bound past
Too far ahead

 

Somewhere in the distance
An enemy was not seen
I remained cowardly frozen, while oblivious
To all the  dangers surrounding me

 

Why in this particular moment
To be struck in the head
Not by a missile
But, by too many questions I could not comprehend

 

Of deafening explosions, whistling bullets
A reddening madness in the midst
I stood all alone…
Contemplating with anger and clenching my fists

 

Then, I spied a suspicious movement
From out the corner of my eye
He came rushing towards me, bayonet in hand
Now, I reasoned fairly quickly that I did not want to die

 

It was he or it was I
Who was more willing to live
Were there now moral questions to decide
Or just an instinct of actions we did

 

Sadly my love
All I can say…
Is that, I’m the one who lived
And walked away

 

Again, in regret I inform you
That I’m not entirely sure if I sinned
But, this I do know, I did not win
I killed a man today

Author's Note

One of the very first poems I wrote.

Reviews

[Bright Ocean Star]

Michael, this one is a wonderfully written, deeply personal poem full of conflicted thoughts. You tell a story of a brave man on the battlefield confronted with the age old ethical question: him or me. I believe there is no sin in shedding blood and lives on the battlefield. The end game is coming home to the ones you love, in one piece hopefully in mind, body and soul. Nice write, my friend.

[Michael G. Smith]

Great review, this is officially the first poem I wrote and with almost no edit. I try to put myself in others shoes and write from that fictional characters point a view. What would we do faced with death from another in the heat of battle? I know I would whatever it took to survive to as you said come home to my family.

[Md. Ziaul Haque]

Nice, simple and full of grave issues to ponder over. Great writing!

[Michael G. Smith]

Thanks you very much. It's the age old question "What would we do"?

[uNmAsKeD-dEluSiOns]

Your talent is too good to express into words....each one of these poems hits me hard in a different place in my heart and mind. I've never experienced this either but I think you really did express how a soldier feels when he has to kill a man- how he will always feel that guilt but has to keep moving forward. And the whole wife aspect of it- well written, You know your a great poet when you can write about things that haven't happened to you specifically and you nail it. Good job!

[Michael G. Smith]

I appreciate your words. I just try to be the best that I can be at this craft. Try and touch people in different ways and touch on subjects that others may be afraid to approach but think about. Today in this world truth has become controversy.

[uNmAsKeD-dEluSiOns]

I respect that and You have succeeded!

[Saddam]

A milestone start.
Soldierd are honest but a "Kathputali" for follow the order whether that is right or Sighed....
It is hitting my heart and soul.

[Michael G. Smith]

Thank you for your review.I believe God doesn't address sin to soldiers under commands unless they hold murder in their hearts but it is a tough subject to understand. Who is the "Katputali" you speak of?

[Laminators Dubai]

this one is going to be stuck in my head for a very long long time.

[Michael G. Smith]

Good thing or bad thing? Anyway thanks for reading it.

[Laminators Dubai]

Good thing of course. (ーー゛)

[Moniba]

Oh wow. One of the best war poems, I like the idea. And the first and last stanzas.

[Michael G. Smith]

Thanks for such a great compliment. If you could read my poem Letters from the Battlefield.

[s y e]

Oh wow, you blew me away... I can't believe how much this affected me. War poems are my favourite to read... It touches me so much and really has a space in my heart.

[Michael G. Smith]

I read this to two different ladies when I was out paying bills and it brought both of them to tears as they shared that it made them think of love ones lost at war. This was when I first began writing so I felt a satisfaction that my wok could touch others in a way. Thank you for your comments on this. If you haven't yet read my poem Letters from the Battlefield.

[Madalyn Beck]

This is a phenomenal write. I have family who are in the army and it really takes a part of their soul. I can't thank they all enough for their service. Great job with this!! :)

[Michael G. Smith]

I hear you. I have two brothers that served in Iraq, a father in Vietnam and a grandfather in WWII. I sometimes reflect on their feelings in the midst of combat. My company leases land from a gun manufacture and they are often testing military arms making feel like I am hearing sounds they would here on the battlefield.

[Frieda P]

There are no winners where war is concerned. Very emotive piece of work here Michael. Ending is killer, no pun intended.

[Michael G. Smith]

Thanks Frieda.