“Did you say you fought for peace?”,

Asked a little girl to a veteran of war,

“For if peace is what you really sought,

Why did you burn a village to its core?”

“Did you say we burnt a village?”,

Asked the veteran, quite surprised,

“All that treachery was required,

For a victory we had prized!”

“My question isn’t answered”,

Replied the girl strong-headed,

“Why did you call the war a one for peace,

If peace was the very thing it shredded?”

“I see your point there”,

Replied the man, thinking,

“You ask why we had all that war,

When peace was only sinking.”

“You see child, nothing’s simple,

Most reasons are bizarre!

To say we fought that war for peace,

Would be a step too far!”

“I’d say we did it for the victory,

We fought for our nation’s pride!

We conquered a part o’ history”

The veteran proudly replied.

“And then there’s about this village,

This one you say we’d burnt,

Well I don’t quite remember,

So, tell me, where was this learnt?”

“Oh! war had knocked me at my door,

Had shaken me by scare,

Had made my family insecure,

And burnt my village beyond repair!”

“I know not who did this,

Nor know why,

But one thing’s clear for sure,

Your war for peace was with a blinded eye,

And no good did this ensure.”

And then the veteran stood there,

Despite his victory and pride,

And then with a mature smile,

He thoughtfully replied,

“You have me there, my little child,

Now you have me thinking,

But we had always realized,

The sacrifices we were making.”

“For when we drove into war,

When we took our enemies down,

Our conscience always troubled us,

Our souls were scarred with frowns”

“We asked ourselves, was it worth it?

All that blood and lives?

But to fill ourselves with regret,

Wouldn’t really be wise!”

“So, then we answered ourselves”,

Said the veteran to the child,

“That war only bought peace to nations,

But within our souls we only cried!”

About The Poet

Gerard Joshi, 13 years old, is a grade 8 student of The Indian International School, Dubai. He is an active blogger with a great sense of humor, a mature sense of understanding and an optimistic attitude towards life. Poetry is his second love, the first being exploring latest technology, reviewing games and coding.

A long collection of Robert Louis Stevenson would any day be his best way to unwind. And the perfect birthday gift would be a road trip or exploring an unknown part of the world. An avid reader, he has his opinions and thoughts on politics, society and future trends. He looks forward to exploring the world with an open mind.