Military Poems
Afghanistan's sorrow and resilience
by Dr. Robert Ippaso
A land fought over from antiquity,
It's fertile plains and mountains steep,
Coveted and plundered with iniquity,
It's people slaughtered as helpless sheep.
From Alexander, through Genghis Khan,
Invading hordes without respite
Killing all to the last man,
Sowing misery and plight.
......
Resting Under The Old Oak Tree
by Jeffrey Pipes Guice
Resting under the old oak tree...
We did our part; we fought the war...
Billy, Bobby and Sammy and me...
Then our lives ended; didn’t get very far...
We fired our weapons from our foxhole...
We did our best, both day and night...
While the enemy fired down upon us...
We fought bravely to hide our fright...
......
The Half-Drawn Hill
by Samuel Cody
I set out on a meandering walk, just for the thrill.
I didn't care how long that jaunt would last.
And I paused upon the crest of a hill,
To gaze for a while, across a sea of steel and glass.
Then, with a sudden and jarring chill,
I was blinded by my distant, catalyzing past!
Slowly crumbling buttresses.
Deeply rooted stanchions.
Crudely crafted barricades.
......
Some Sunny Day
by Brian Cowan
So, I sees ’im in the grocery store a-shufflin’ down the aisle.
‘Is cart stuffed to the brim with food an’ wife ‘n’ kids in tow.
An’ I can’t ‘elp but let myself put on a great big smile
At this image of the rough-an’-tumble man I used to know.
“Troop!” says I, when ‘e gets near; ‘e looks me up an’ down.
Then ‘e too smiles as broad as paint; ‘is missus starts to frown.
“Well it’s bin years,” ‘e says to me, I scarcely knew ‘twas you
An’ we settled down to chew the fat ‘bout ol’ days that we knew.
......
Resting Under The Old Oak Tree
by Jeffrey Pipes Guice
Resting under the old oak tree...
We did our part; we fought the war...
Billy, Bobby and Sammy and me...
Then our lives ended; didn’t get very far...
We fired our weapons from our foxhole...
We did our best, both day and night...
While the enemy fired down upon us...
We fought bravely to hide our fright...
......
Afghanistan's sorrow and resilience
by Dr. Robert Ippaso
A land fought over from antiquity,
It's fertile plains and mountains steep,
Coveted and plundered with iniquity,
It's people slaughtered as helpless sheep.
From Alexander, through Genghis Khan,
Invading hordes without respite
Killing all to the last man,
Sowing misery and plight.
......
Some Sunny Day
by Brian Cowan
So, I sees ’im in the grocery store a-shufflin’ down the aisle.
‘Is cart stuffed to the brim with food an’ wife ‘n’ kids in tow.
An’ I can’t ‘elp but let myself put on a great big smile
At this image of the rough-an’-tumble man I used to know.
“Troop!” says I, when ‘e gets near; ‘e looks me up an’ down.
Then ‘e too smiles as broad as paint; ‘is missus starts to frown.
“Well it’s bin years,” ‘e says to me, I scarcely knew ‘twas you
An’ we settled down to chew the fat ‘bout ol’ days that we knew.
......
The Half-Drawn Hill
by Samuel Cody
I set out on a meandering walk, just for the thrill.
I didn't care how long that jaunt would last.
And I paused upon the crest of a hill,
To gaze for a while, across a sea of steel and glass.
Then, with a sudden and jarring chill,
I was blinded by my distant, catalyzing past!
Slowly crumbling buttresses.
Deeply rooted stanchions.
Crudely crafted barricades.
......
