Memoir of a WWI Soldier

 They sent me to France,
A beautiful foreign land,
Torn apart by trenches and warfare.
The war lasted years, its people are tired,
It is an ugly, ugly affair.

My friend fought at the Somme,
His brother had fallen and was gone.
Perished gasping for air and his mask,
In the midst of the mustard gas.

The artilley fired shells,
The Five-Nines flew over.
It was a sight, a sight of hell,
Seeing the explosions and gas.

I dreaded that command,
I was scared to hear those words.
It sent us to our peril,
Over the top, rushing to the woods.

It came, the command.
The captain shouted, "over the top!"
Men died, it was a massacre.
I can only wish my own children,
May never see this carnage.

I ran to my trench,
So few survived.
To run across No Man's Land,
Was pure suicide.

I thought about Death,
How it feels to die.
I'm afraid it'll hurt,
I don't want to struggle,
I don't want to squirm on the ground, bleeding,
Till life drains out.

As we marched though the trench,
We ducked from the rockets,
Scary, screaming minnie exploded,
Too many lives, it pryed.

We went over once more,
To take the Hun's land away.
I saw many carnage, many gore.
We put our masks on, as we met the Huns.

We were locked in hand to hand combat.
I saw my friend.  He had a hole in his stomach.
I tripped on roots as a Hun watched.
He ran over with his bayonet, fury in his eyes,
Stood above me, didn't look older than twenty.

My life flashed in front of me,
From when I learned how to swim,
To when I graduated boot camp,
From when they sent me to France,
To fight in a foreign war.

The Hun's gaze hardened,
His muscles tightened,
As he prepared to kill.
He stabbed me once, and again
Many holes in my body,
As my life drained away.

I was left in the mud,
As my comrades pushed on.
I stood by the Gates to meet them,
As they arrived in bunches.