On Modern War

A sonnet for our soldiers [Honoring Our Veterans entry, 01/2013].

On Modern War



The world has changed and war as waged by man
no longer features battle lines we see.
Instead, we fight on nameless desert sand
and there pursue the goal of victory.


Both man and woman serve in landscapes bleak,
denying self to guard some far-off land.
Of their privations seldom do they speak,
but quietly their hardships do withstand.


What memories are able to sustain
a soldier serving far from hearth and home?
Can days gone by help him or her regain
their former life when they no longer roam?


Just when all strife will end no man can say,
but soldiers pray for it each bloody day.