[loosygoosy007]

A poem about World War I...


As thousands left the Land of the Free,
'Twas happiness and joy the soldier's eye did see,
A chance at fame, a war of pure fun,
Cheers and a short return when battle is won,

They'd be home by Christmas, a short time indeed,
What more convenience did a soldier need?
They rode off in the train, a feeling so great,
Smiling and waving, awaiting a perilous fate...

...they arrived in France, awaiting a sight,
A vision so troubled, filling them with fright,
The war they pictured was a hoax; reality now set in,
Thousands were dying each day, trying to save their kin,
The bloodshed horror, the soldiers crying,
The army men wailing as their friends were dying,
The new soldiers walked on, terrror in their eyes,
Imagining if there was a chance they'd ever survive...

...scared to death, they waiting for hope,
An end to the battles the enemy provoked,
A resolution to violence, to the hated unrest,
To the victims of war, the casualties did attest,

They faced unsanitary conditions:
Rats the size of badgers,
The stench of blood in the air,
The weakest fell in pain,
While the enemy witnessed without care,

A new challenge they faced:
Death before their eyes,
Violence to the greatest extent,
The Germans did devise,

The soldiers were always alert,
They barely slept,
While back home,
Wives and children wept,

Heartbroken sorrow,
Grief to them,
The tears of twenty-two million men,
Dead, silenced,
In battle so great,
Beaten, trampled,
In utmost hate,
Screaming in pain,
Hit by rifles and grenades,
Grasping onto one last breath,
As life slowly faded away...


Few returned home to America,
Leaving the lost soldiers, their souls now free,
The few survivors of what became,
The deadliest war in history.

[RENA HANDS]

Extraordinary! You have managed to combine beauty of life with the ugliness of war. The emotions for me are very conflicting, but it is appropriate in this situation, I think. So I’ll give 5/5!

[Nupur]

Wonderful! I love writing about war, and this is definitely a treat to read. Great descriptions and imagery and truly fantastic lines.

The new soldiers walked on, terror in their eyes,

Typo.

...scared to death, they waiting for hope,

Perhaps ‘they were waiting’. That’ll be grammatically right and not pose a problem with the flow.

Very very well done. You have described each small detail like sanitary conditions, the weapons, grenades et al exceptionally well. I really love this poem. The last stanza is my absolute favourite.

Few returned home to America,
Leaving the lost soldiers, their souls now free,
The few survivors of what became,
The deadliest war in history.

The rhymes are wonderfully done and these lines are simply amazing. Great job, loosy!