The Soldier & The Man

[Dark Muse]

The Soldier & The Man

Regret lingers in your eyes,
haunted by past crimes,
deeds done out of necessity ,
but need makes for little comfort
when alone with your thoughts
in the dark hours of the night.

And I reach for you,
you know you are alone no longer,
I have no power to bestow absolution,
but I can show you the goodness
I know lives inside of you,
the tenderness of your heart
which bleeds for lives lost.

There is no way to cleanse the past,
to wash it away, and the blood
will remain upon the soul,
but the past is not who you are,
it does not define the man
who stands before me.

I can see the regret,
and I know of the killer who lurks inside,
but I can also see the tenderness,
who better than I know of the gentleness
in your hands, that you were the one
to teach me what love really means,
and there may be darkness behind you,
but you were the light which guided me
from the shadows of my own memories.

[virtuoso]

I am not sure that absolution is necessary for most soldiers. Killing is a duty of the soldier. It is killed or be killed. If there is ever a case for self defense, then it is a soldier defending his nation's values and his own life. A soldier who commits war crimes, indefensible killing, is the exception to the rule. I respect your conviction against any type of killing, but I do not agree with it. I like the last line, "from the shadows of my own memories". But, I do think that most of the soldier wives support their husband's actions in war(including killing). Yet, the conscientious objector wive goes with your conviction against killing in war, so your treatise is consistent. Your thoughts are expressed in a coherent, appealing manner. Enjoyed your poem.

[Dark Muse]

I am not sure that absolution is necessary for most soldiers. Killing is a duty of the soldier. It is killed or be killed. If there is ever a case for self defense, then it is a soldier defending his nation's values and his own life. A soldier who commits war crimes, indefensible killing, is the exception to the rule. I respect your conviction against any type of killing, but I do not agree with it. I like the last line, "from the shadows of my own memories". But, I do think that most of the soldier wives support their husband's actions in war(including killing). Yet, the conscientious objector wive goes with your conviction against killing in war, so your treatise is consistent. Your thoughts are expressed in a coherent, appealing manner. Enjoyed your poem.

Just because something is necessary does not mean that one does not feel guilty about having to do it. One can argue about whether or not that guilt is misplaceed but it is no less there, no matter if someone else might think that there is no cause for it. The killing may be necessary, but that does not mean the individual actually enjoy being placed in the position of having to kill. This is a poem about the individual feeling that they need absolution for the things they were made to do, it not about another persons judgement upon them. It is about the way in which war turns good people, people that in normal circumstances would wish no harm against anyone else into killers, and the consequences which may result in that, the things which war does to the individual by being forced to take actions that normally would be considered heinous. Being placed in the position is not the kind of thing most people just completely walk away from without it taking some tole upon their soul, or the state of their mind.

This poem is also a very personal poem. It is not about my personal ideology, but about the struggles of one near and dear to my heart.

[cafolini]

Just because something is necessary does not mean that one does not feel guilty about having to do it. One can argue about whether or not that guilt is misplaceed but it is no less there, no matter if someone else might think that there is no cause for it. The killing may be necessary, but that does not mean the individual actually enjoy being placed in the position of having to kill. This is a poem about the individual feeling that they need absolution for the things they were made to do, it not about another persons judgement upon them. It is about the way in which war turns good people, people that in normal circumstances would wish no harm against anyone else into killers, and the consequences which may result in that, the things which war does to the individual by being forced to take actions that normally would be considered heinous. Being placed in the position is not the kind of thing most people just completely walk away from without it taking some tole upon their soul, or the state of their mind.

This poem is also a very personal poem. It is not about my personal ideology, but about the struggles of one near and dear to my heart.

Have you any idea where you and your very personal poem would be if it weren't for those who gave their lives or fought with valor to make your post possible? I don't think you do. Personal my arse.

[virtuoso]

This is definitely a feminine viewpoint. Soldiers are volunteers, and they, usually, do not mind carrying out orders during a battle. Yes, this includes killing. The psychological trauma experienced after a soldier returns home is usually associated not with the guilt of killing the enemy, but with traumas of disassociation and deceleration. There are, obviously, notable exceptions to this rule.

[Dark Muse]

This is definitely a feminine viewpoint. Soldiers are volunteers, and they, usually, do not mind carrying out orders during a battle. Yes, this includes killing. The psychological trauma experienced after a soldier returns home is usually associated not with the guilt of killing the enemy, but with traumas of disassociation and deceleration. There are, obviously, notable exceptions to this rule.

I am currently reading For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway, which is about the Spanish Civil War. There is this really great scene in the book in which one of the characters laments all the killing he has been made to do, and questions if there can be forgivingness for being made to commit such a sin.

In many ways reading this book is close to home to me, because of how it relates to the experiences of one very close to me.

I was inspired to write this after reading that scene, and reflecting upon how it relates to the person close to me in my life.

[virtuoso]

Your poem has a valid viewpoint, however, I think it is one that is not widely shared. It might go well with grizzly civil wars, or wars where there are a number of ordered massacres. Bosnia comes to my mind. I think that in most of the wars soldiers are conditioned, some even gungho, to kill the enemy. Gruesome war scenes, in which there may or may not be killing, is another story. Our opinions may differ, but I think your thesis is shared by enough people to make it tenable. I do like to read war poems that have a feminine viewpoint.

[Dark Muse]

Your poem has a valid viewpoint, however, I think it is one that is not widely shared. It might go well with grizzly civil wars, or wars where there are a number of ordered massacres. Bosnia comes to my mind. I think that in most of the wars soldiers are conditioned, some even gungho, about killing the enemy. Gruesome war scenes, in which there may or may not be killing, is another story. Our opinions may differ, but I think your thesis is shared by enough people to make it tenable. I do like to read war poems that have a feminine viewpoint.

This poem really was not written for any sort of political reason, or necessarily to convey a specific ideological view point. I wrote this poem, simply as an expression of love for a particular individual whom has had experiences in war, and has to deal with the aftermath of that.

[cafolini]

Your poem has a valid viewpoint, however, I think it is one that is not widely shared. It might go well with grizzly civil wars, or wars where there are a number of ordered massacres. Bosnia comes to my mind. I think that in most of the wars soldiers are conditioned, some even gungho, to kill the enemy. Gruesome war scenes, in which there may or may not be killing, is another story. Our opinions may differ, but I think your thesis is shared by enough people to make it tenable. I do like to read war poems that have a feminine viewpoint.

You might as well give up your BS. Every message posted in any forum is political because politics is intrinsic. No one can avoid being political. Give up. Be useful for something.

[Lykren]

I too think that 'from the shadows of my own memories' is a very strong line to end with. Throughout the poem your words have an easy and relaxed flow to them.

In regards to the discussion regarding the poem's philosophy, I do not think that Dark Muse's viewpoint is a uniquely feminine one; I am a man and I am unable to distinguish the difference between murder and the killing that goes on during a war. It's difficult for me to believe that warfare can augment the spread of spread of free speech, and I also do not believe that any one country has a monopoly on said free speech. I would prefer to believe the struggle for freedom is an internal, and not an external, conflict.

I am not sure that that is exactly how Dark Muse feels about things - I am simply giving my own viewpoint.