THE CRIMSON SKY

The rifle shot, the flying grenade

Keeps the sleepless child awake

In shock amongst the marching feet

He stares across the bloody street

He tries to crawl and get away

From this chaotic disarray

But Alas! He does not.....

And sits there still ....All alone

He knew the place that he was in

Would keep him safe from worldly sin

It was the tender touch, the lovely smile

The fragrance of the mother's lap

That kept him waiting right in there......

Calling Mama in despair.......

The shudder of the rifle shots

The screeches of the dying men

Kept growing on his little ears

Hoping for a world he knew

To shimmer up into view

He stares up at the crimson sky

To see the bleeding sun deny

The light that made a brighter day

Dumbfound the little boy there lay

As Mama slept an endless sleep

A sleep that he had never known

A sleep that left him all alone

All alone, he witnessed the war

The war, a license for man to kill

The war, that we all call CIVIL................

The crimson sky stared down below

Smiling gently with a reddish glow

He's seen it all, he's known it all

But when the end to this would come

HE doesn't know, he just kept mum............

-------------Dedicated to all those children who have woken up to chattering rifles. To all those children who know a gun better than a violin. To all those children who have seen more blood than milk............