Olalekan Ajayi Poet Free verse

At the Foot of the Unknown Soldier

At the foot of the unknown soldier
I heard them speak about the past
The generation born after the war
I heard them sing of warfare
Like children recite rhymes 
I heard their threats of war 
Even from lands abroad 
I heard them talk about 
Fighting to the last man
As though they knew 
The pain of a mother letting her son
Go to fight for the fatherland
Or the anguish of comrades 
Falling to foes in battle
And embarking on lonely journeys
Into immortal provinces
The generation born after the surrender
Speak of fanning the embers of war
And lacing the drums hung for decades
They say war is the only path to freedom
Unknown to them that 
Men fall like cattle in battle
Where rifles rattle in senseless rage
And men long to return home to 
Laugh with families and neighbours for 
The gory sight of blood and torn flesh
Is not worth the hopeless glory
The commanders seek 
It is not a tale for one’s children 
So, when I heard them say the ended war
Needed to be revived because 
One clan lays claim to perpetuity 
I knew they were oblivious that 
Those who started the war 
Were absentee members of platoons 
Whose children mounted no wagon
Destined for the warfront
Where helpless soldiers turn to dust
While the new generation yet spoke
I heard the voices of many unknown soldiers
On both sides of the fraternal war
Echo from unmarked graves on the battlefield
I heard them ask if the war was a good cause
I heard them ask if any side won the war
I heard them ask if we won freedom
I heard them ask if they were given
Heroes’ burials with the band playing
I heard them ask if those who started the war
Were now satisfied and cared for their kith
I heard them ask if they had not died in vain
And if this generation knew not the woes of war.

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Reggae Magnet July 18, 2020 at 9:02 AM A quandary indeed, as we ask the questions, the inevitable will happen but its always the main players in the field, those who don't know what true freedom is and desire it for his fellow man. Nice write, as we keep repeating what mankind started doing from the beginning of time with no solutions to it, alas,its human frailty.