A Soldiers Bequest Poem by Gordon D Wilkinson

We fight willingly for our country
For the liberty and welfare of loved ones
Protecting the defenceless
Our life is the token we place in arenas of death
Placed there without thought of the consequences
Freely unerringly given
Giving for what we believe in
Sometimes crippled, mostly dying
Through the ages against tyranny
Fighting with inimitable valour
Willing to defend to death
For the right to respect and be respected
Armies and governments will come and go
Soldiers will live on forever
Even those under those grassy sods
Marked by the crosses sign
Placed there in grief
Weep not for the man beneath the mound
Humanity needs the tears more