War

The heavens looked down upon such dreadful scenes,
Of countries who had sent their sons
To fight no matter what the cost.
All they could see were wars that must be won.
Thousands died on the fields of death.
Thousands who followed them, they too died.
It was the killing of the young
Boys who had volunteered and enlisted with such pride.

The heavens looked down upon such dreadful scenes,
Of countries who had sent their men to war,
The attrition and the carnage on both sides.
When it was over it was asked, what had it all been for?
The widows and their children, the missing, the unknown,
The limbless and those buried far from family and home,
The destruction of the churches, the cities and the towns,
Family homes, familiar places, all gutted to the ground.

The heavens looked down upon such happy scenes,
When the war was over and peace had at last come,
When the sky was silent from the enemy planes
And there was stillness from the sound of guns.
When men came marching to their homes again
Amid tumulous applause and to the nation's praise,
But with memories that in their lifetime
They never would be able to erase.

The heavens looked down upon such happy scenes,
Of people rejoicing and dancing in the street.
From churches, voices singing songs of praise
And strangers embracing strangers as they meet.
The atmosphere was happiness and tears,
People celebrating the end of long war years.
These men of war why do they fail to see
All most people want is peace and harmony?