Facing The Chill Poem by Gert Strydom

At eighteen I was called-up to the military,
into the SADF, for two years of compulsory service
and hard and great times it had been for me,
during the time of the Border / Bush-war.
With a last minute cancelling I was very nervous,
on a Sunday the telegram came: the army did me not ignore,

the next day off on the train I went
as one of thousands of recruits
to basic training / boot camp sent,
to face the anger of men in shining boots,

where to those times there is many a tale,
but after those two years every year,
the army did with its call-ups prevail
for a camp to which I had to adhere,

and those times came far too quickly,
as if from the army I would never be free.

2
At work I would get a call from a compatriot:
'have you grown a beard, ' he would ask,
as a South African he was a patriot:
no service was for him an annoying task.

Every time within minutes my telegram also came,
that told me a time and date and place to report,
(sweetheart thought it to be for grown men a game)
at times in greeting at Waterkloof Military Airport did retort,

but I could be going after more training into war,
into Angola in a mechanized unit in conventional attacks,
suddenly life was by the minute, changed from before
and sometimes my dreams back-tracks,

as if I am forced to re-live the most awful scenes:
things that the nature of man demeans.

3
Sometimes I parachuted or was dropped into a fire-fight,
or by HALO or HAHO into the war-zone,
seconded to a unit that does scout, to our military to en-light
about tanks and armoured units approaching our own,

or about the position of aircraft at a airfield,
about enemy occupying a military camp,
or to wherever the colonel appealed,
not as sweet-heart thought: a way to revamp,

or for support to police while people did each other kill,
in an urge to destroy did fuel in tyres light,
which did all over someone's body spill
and it's disheartening to see people in death delight,

where now it feels as in another time and life,
where I was trained and expected to survive.

4
On one camp we were transported by train,
it was in the middle of winter and to Cape Town we went,
to Parow into a Marine Base we were sent
Cape Town has a Mediterranean climate and winter rain.

They had bungalows, we a more elite unit in tent upon tent,
that the South-Easter in full force did blow apart,
there was snow on the mountains, chill to discontent,
but still this was nothing: we were wet but warm at heart,

Ill our commander did not of this know,
the marines did not dare to approach us,
we did immaculate to some parades go,
later we did the circumstances discuss,

we drove through the city with the keys to it,
in military vehicles on parade as do the elite fit.

l'Envoi
5
To most Ukrainians this winter will be past severe,
Putin has wiped out heating and electricity,
do punish the population, that have no other gear,
in the winter's deadly chill still hot to be,

already at places in Celsius it's minus one,
while some houses have been partly destroyed,
and with missile strikes he is not done,
fear he thinks in Ukrainians he has employed

but not equipped for winter his troops are ill,
the generals want from Kherson to withdraw,
where the desert do amplify the autumn chill,
he does not care about the pictures they draw:

they state that they are going terribly to loose
like a madman to carry on does him infuse.

6

"Crux" does constantly on Belgorod report
about incidents the Russian mourn,
about a false-flag attack the ISW did warn,
while Russia does facts to the it's narrative distort,

by doing this Russia tries to get public support
where away from its views the public are torn,
its troops in decimation are forlorn,
on Telegram Russians do to this view consort:

Putin has the most preposterous narrative
about Belgorod that Ukraine is going to invade it,
Mikado News says Ukraine did attack: Putin will retaliate,
as if to Russia's invasion comparative,
it does propaganda and some radicals fit,
'We support Ukrainian Antifascists, ' stir more hate,

7
Russian 'Mikado News' as if its Mercado Media act,
'We support Ukrainian Antifascists: about a POW lie:
as if in winter Kiev Belgorod and Kursk will attack,
to for Putin to get more Russians in Ukraine to die,

while in Ukraine more missiles hit civilians,
as Putin like a terrorist with missiles hit
and from houses Putin has driven millions,
which do snugly into his plans of disruption fit,

fifty percent of electric facilities are gone
the hardship do now constantly escalate,
as Putin do the innocent kill as the war rages on,
while we probably cannot to these things relate,

to a maniac and people that acts inhuman,
and that they will survive do with Ukrainians acumen.

8
Most of the coal mines Russia has taken,
scarce is firewood already through-out Ukraine,
to Putin's wickedness not everyone has awaken,
and in some countries to this evil support do remain,

additional heating have never been needed,
and during winter the situation will escalate
Putin is angry at people that have Russian-evil heeded
where this evil is not driven by God or fate,

for help for these people I can only pray,
pray that they a way with others will find,
while like Nineveh God does Russian obliteration delay,
but for this war judgement has been assigned.

A person wants others to have shelter and heat,
to have a life and something special to eat.

9
Russian troops are without proper medical care,
without winter clothes and winter gear,
as they do for a more deadly time prepare
and for the Ukrainians they have fear,

while infections, bacteria, colds and flue
are sweeping through the Russian ranks
how to win Ukraine Putin has no clue,
as Ukraine his frontal assaults out-flanks,

Putin's generals begged for massive retreats
from Kremina, Svatove, Luhansk and Kherson
they are scared with losses for great defeats,
while Putin wants the war to rage on

as thunder-run blitzkrieg go through gaps,
and near seems a total Russian collapse.

10
In the rain most roads are muddy,
from Zaphorizhzia Russians want to retreat
while to their detriment the battles are bloody,
the generals say that Ukraine is them going to defeat:

they cannot in it and Kherson fatalities ignore,
with numbers they meet stronger opposition,
to Putin to retreat they did implore,
but he refused on this to make a decision.

Like before he leaves it till too late,
where military collapse is very near
and in action there is both karma and fate,
and the Russians are full on great fear,

This coming winter will also these Russians hit,
worse than the Ukrainians they will be affected by it.

[Poet's notes: High-altitude military parachuting: HALO: the parachute opens at a low altitude near the ground for quick entry into a place that is really near the enemy.
HAHO: The parachute opens at a high altitude, to drift on the wind moments after leaving the aircraft.

'We Support Ukrainian Antifascists' and 'Mikado News' are both Russian propaganda entities.

Mikado News tries to act as it is Mercado Media, an independent Media and News company run by an American veteran.

The ISW is the Institute for the Study of War, an American think-tank.]
© Gert Strydom