For honor! For valor! The battle stole and won
Where up the soul arises down the barrel of a gun
The courses set and forces met with destined blood and bones
But I, I fear, am fated here to never journey home
Tell my wife I love her
Send my body out to sea
My heart she kept. My life I served.
My soul, it goes with me
For kingdom! For country! In reverence of soil
The motherland our fathers’ hands did break for till and toil
I’ll always see the sun that sets those valleys just the same
But I hear my dawn come calling out from far across the plains
Send a letter to my mother
That her baby boy died free
I gave my all for others
But my soul, it goes with me
For freedom! For future! For all our children dream
That all their worlds may always stay as hopeful as they seem
Come cannon blares that tremble on those dark and foreign hills
My mind be ready, heart be steady, breath be calm and still
Give my memory to my daughters
Carve my will upon the trees
Give my life across the waters
But my soul, it goes with me
Zachary Dilks is a writer currently residing just outside of Austin, Texas. A toolmaker by trade and a poet by heart, he began pursuing his passion for writing at age 17.
Loved it! Great work, Zachary and even better perspective.
Marvelous and haunting point of view.
Thank you for that, Joe!
This is an awesome poem. I love the rollicking meter and internal rhymes; it reminds me of Longfellow or something along those lines. Great work!
What an amazing poem, with rich, valiant emotional thoughts. A metric roller-coaster with heart-beat rhymes and rhythm. I am reminded of the Louis L’Amour ‘Lost Frontiers’ and the wild, wild west.
Marvelous heroic poetry. Thank you.