To Manhood In a Foxhole

The silence... The stillness Akin to shadows, long fingers reach Warriors and I Lie here in the hallow Fear…beside us, beseech! Where is the enemy? Whispers seem to ring out Lips from my fingers, keeps head from arise To quell eager peering about I am a boy But, this night, man become I I and my buddies… Too young, aren’t prepared to die Onto their arms I do grab Keeping their lives from growing all too short Then, echoes…echoes. ..Breaking the silence of the still A loud shot! Reports…. The one… Then two! A hail of missiles, I bring up my gun Dirt spraying from every direction, which way do I shoot? What I do not have…is… Time! Time to think I throw up my machine gun, blindly, not looking… Squeezing the trigger, RAT TAT TAT… in frenzy, RAT TAT TAT…spitting instinct Adrenaline rushing, surging! Beads of sweat freefall to roll Fingers tighten, muscles tauten Madness besieging to depths of soul Then my redden swelling ears take heed From behind comes most frantic, deafening scream Victory, exhilaration, hopes of my enemies all relieved! It’s Johnny who’s been hit! Red river flows his crimson streams I’m sobbing; I’m cradling him and shouting “YOU CANNOT DIE!” Then I whisper…come back to life “Johnny, please, Johnny please" Unnoticed to me, the stillness returns once more and then a paper…a letter… silently floats to the floor It’s the words like bullets that hit me, penned from his wife… “I love you so much, the war will be over in just a short time; make sure you come back to me… Come back to me alive”