Therein All The Honor Lies

The following is one of my longer poems, and I would technically consider it an attempt at an 'epic' poem, since it sort of follows a story (unlike my other rather long poem 'Commentaries on the Burden of War' which is certainly not epic by any stretch). I wrote the first version of this (long since edited) in 1992, which was really the first part of the poem. I finally re-wrote the first portion and tied it to two similar poems (again re-writing a little for some unity of theme) in 2003. So, this is one of my most edited pieces, mostly due to making it consistent and turning it into something that follows a story. And as far as inspiration, I was actually inspired by some accounts of the Mexican-American War, though the opening quote from the Civil War fits just as well.


'Therein All The Honor Lies'

"Soldiering has one great trap. To be a good soldier you must love the army. To be a good commander you must be willing to order the death of the thing you love. We do not fear our own death, you and I. But there comes a time... we are never quite prepared for so many to die. Oh, we do expect the occasional empty chair, a salute to fallen comrades. But this war goes on and on, and the men die, and the price gets ever higher. We are prepared to lose some of us, but we are never prepared to lose all of us." --- Robert E. Lee to General Longstreet, Gettysburg

I.


They charged through the smoke and dust
No glory... simply because it was ordered so.
It was not for the conquest of new lands.
They fought because I said go.

They raced up the ramparts through the hail
Of lead wavering only in the arms of death.
No decisive battle nor desperate last stand
Not even freeing our fellow man.

They stormed the defenses of the wretched fort,
Dirt blasted by falling shells.
Slaughter prevailed on both sides of the line.
Not how I thought it would be.

They fell above the battlements of the old fort
Muskets sending them into the arms of death
Not as I planned... not for glory
Not even for the conquest of new lands.

Dead... Dead because I said go.

II.

Blood stained the walls of the shattered fort
Life once vibrant gone forevermore.
Their hopes and dreams lost to time
for what?
A dusty outpost in the deep of dark
A name not heard until today
Remembered because it was ordered so.

Voices cried from the depths of the fort
Begging for mothers and cursing God above.
Their agony and heartache a cross to bear
for what?
Blind ambition and a manifest dream
A swelling of pride until this moment
Battered into fragments by empty desire.

I wept atop the lonely ramparts
Wondering how this horror could be
The cause should have carried the day
and yet,
The deep of dark overwhelmed my spirit;
Victory brushed into the charnel pits
Where gods and generals must glare
To face their men another day.

III.

They saluted within the rebuilt fort
A battered flag raised high
Objectives met and spirits soared
No want for glory, not even
Freeing their fellow man.
They answered when called
For the hubris of a few and the
Dignity of a nation.

They paraded beneath the quiet walls
Toward a field stripped bare
Smells still overwhelming
They neither wavered nor cared
Fallen heroes are remembered
Friend and foe given their due
While the living bear witness
To what was and what must not be.

I stood in the darkness
Watching them march into the fort's embrace
Filled with a solemn determination,
New defenders hoping to make a difference
For the glory of a nation; perhaps the
Conquest of new lands.
Maybe even freeing their fellow man.
It will not be as they imagine.

So many dead...
The next time I say go.

C.