Every Soldier Poem by Randy McClave

If every single soldier on every army would lay down his arm
Swearing, not to ever cause or to inflict any harm,
If every single soldier everywhere would lay down his side
Knowing because of that action, no one has died.
If every single soldier just takes off his helmet and his boots
Remove everything, that explodes and shoots,
And instead of picking up and carrying a knife or a rifle
They would instead pick up a good book, the Bible.
Now if he could sit by a pond or a lake or even under a tree
Then at the blue, blue sky they would visualize and see,
Then as they read and listen, they would hear not one hateful word
Hate, vengeance, war, racism, bigotry would not be heard.
If they knew that their new commandment
Was to read the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament,
And it was up to them to either deny or to permit
Those who live by the sword, would always die by it.
They want to always draft men with a background like me
Because, we were all born and raised in a middle class family,
And of course if there were ever another conflict or a war
They would quickly put on the front lines, their needy and the poor.
We are the ones that the elite and the powerful always think of first
When they want to bully, attack, steal and coerce,
And when their world is becoming chaotic
We are the ones then told to serve, suit up and become patriotic.
If us soldiers would just sit back and think and just relax
And search for the truth and then tally up all the facts,
Then figure out why we are really serving and suffering and fighting
And why fellow unknown soldiers everywhere are we hating and smiting.
Maybe we all should shout out, "Nope today I will kill nobody"
From America, the UK, Asia, Middle East, Russian, Israel or the Saudi,
Then as every soldier thinks of fatherless daughters and sons
Maybe we should say, "Plenty of rich folks wants to fight, give them our guns".

Randy L. McClave