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When I Was Young 1970s
I saw one journey end and another begin
I saw my world changed and in a spin
I saw another end - the end of the band
I saw John and Yoko hand in hand
I saw commandos in the air armed and ready
I saw hostages freed in a raid on Entebbe
I saw water cannons and tear gas fired
I saw ideology and hypocrisy deeply mired
I saw five rings of death I remember
I saw the Red Brigade, Abu Nidal, Black September
I saw valleys and jungles an orange haze turning
I saw an orphan child - her skin was burning
I saw a man with a guitar - a poet on the stage
I saw a rolling thunder upon the earth rage
I saw LPs spinning on my AWA Series 9
I saw my vinyl records rock this heart of mine
I saw a spring loaded rifle and my eyes grew bigger
I saw a BSA Phantom and pulled the trigger
I saw a bungled burglary strike a chord
I saw a President fall on his sword
I saw death squads, the juntas, the persecutions
I saw the stadiums and their summary executions
I saw in my neighbourhood a serial pest
I saw in the Pacific a nuclear test
I saw a war on drugs that can never be won
I saw the junkies in the streets when it was done
I saw a peasant and ox in a glade laying
I saw in the minefields his children playing
I saw strings where a great council meets
I saw puppets sitting in their seats
I saw an heiress in a bank robbery
I saw the Symbionese Liberation Army
I saw a king nostalgic for when his reign began
I saw him die a bloated and broken man
I saw three miles that sent a shiver
I saw a vision of a glowing river
I saw a people’s temple in the jungle end
I saw cyanide in the cups of young children
I saw choppers on the roof, tanks at the gate
I saw a war end but it was too late
I saw kidnapping, hijacking, a violent blast
I saw it in Beirut, in Saigon, in Belfast
I saw peacemakers made of clay and straw
I saw death and suffering, famine and war
I saw people running scared - beggars and tramps
I saw boats of humanity and refugee camps
I saw the desecration of a holy place
I saw a great divide - it was the human race
I saw a pale ghost of flesh and bone
I saw the angel of death come to my home
I saw Jacob and Esau shaking hands
I saw God making His own plans
I saw a famine of food, of ideas, of peace
I saw a bounty of hate that would not cease
I saw invasion by an imperialist thug
I saw the casualties and graves that were dug
I saw an accused man of a muderous crime
I saw him released and given back his time
I saw this decade end through the eyes of a teen
I saw not where I was going - only where I’d been
Written: April 2008
Copyright ©
Keith D Trestrail
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