What Is Victory? Poem by St.Claire Redwood

Hungry hearts remember loves lost in battle
While parents despair over bodies
That once were their sons so abundant with life,
And wonder why they should die!

What do these broken, bleeding bodies prove?
Were these men brave or just loyal?
Do soldiers know or even care why they fight?
Are they murderers, or only men
Fighting for what they truly believe is right?

How fruitless is all the fighting and bloodshed,
Why can man not live in harmony?
Can we know that young children die in anguish
And not weep for man's cruelty?

Why do we destroy what Nature has made wondrous
All the beauty that surrounds us?
Fill it with blood, tears, death, sorrow and despair,
Until the horror of man disgusts
And revolts all those who look upon his face!

Do we just close our eyes so we cannot see
Babies dying of starvation,
Young men who will have to face life without limbs,
And people lost and heartbroken?

Is it possible we think the wounds will mend,
Or is it just that we are callous?
How can a man, knowing death's reality
Call a war 'for man's benefit'?
How can he think victory is important?

Victory, the treasure of evil men's hearts,
How can they think you are precious,
Tell me you men who institute battle
What is this thing called Victory?

I will tell you that when the war is over,
And the broken soldiers come home,
The victorious nation will raise their flag
Watched by the tear-filled tragic eyes
Of men amidst the ruins that are their Victory!