War torn days & memories...

Tormented Streets.

Here I stand-alone again,
To you I am just another face without a name,
To be teased and tormented,
Prodded and poked,
To bear the brunt of your aggression,
The outlet of all your fruitless violence.

If it would end the troubles,
Take my body take my soul,
Cast your stones; soak me in petrol,
Why don't you just blow me the hell away?
Anything would be better than the situation were in now!
Whatever it would take to end the time consuming battle of the streets,
Where a child of six has to watch his back whilst at play,
When a mother is never sure if her child is safe,
This is not the way it was meant to be,
The children are innocent, so why should they fear?

I am part of the faceless D.P.M machine, that risks life and limb,
Each and every day I patrol your streets, trying to keep you safe,
I risk my life to protect yours and those who are near and dear to you,
A risk not many of you would take,
I risk all this in the name of peace.

It started too many moons ago to count,
I am not denying that the history of this scenario was bad,
I am not ignoring the past,
The future is in our children’s hands, eyes, hearts and souls,
We have to move on for their sakes.

When I stand behind that, shield, with visor down, that baton in hand,
The stereotype that I want to hurt and maim is not true,
For that is not my nature, nor my intent,
I want to be with my family and friends,
In my local night club, enjoying my freedom, as you enjoy yours.

I walk down your streets and I am ashamed to admit,
That I know them as well as I know my own,
It is hard not to get jealous when I see your young lovers walking hand in hand,
For I have someone to share myself with,
Someone to hold in the still of the night,
When sleep eludes me, and my waking nightmares haunt me,
To see the fear in her eyes, when she knows I am going away,
Hurts more than any pain you could know,
A pain I have caused through my choice to defend your right to peace.

We want to be here less than you want us here,
We would rather be in our homes,
For we are human too,
Yet, many of you never consider this,
Let us move on from the past, and create a better future.

If only for the sake of the generations of children to be born,
Into this war brought out onto the streets,
Fought in the back alleys of your homes,
Waged in the city, and continued in the countryside,
Whatever denomination you are,
Let us bring an end to this atrocity that has escalated to the loss of so many lives,
The lives of countless men, women and of course the sweet innocent lives of our future,
The children, whom we all love with our hearts and souls.

Let us bring an end to the standing behind the shields,
Facing the torrents of bricks and petrol bombs,
We have our own lives to lead, our own futures to make,
We want to be with our children, to see them grow,
To share their special moments, like you have with yours.

I believe in my heart of hearts,
That a peace can be achieved,
That there is an end to these troubles,
Quiet can reign throughout these streets,
Tears of joy can course down faces rather than tears of sorrow,
Do you really want to see another distraught mother and father?
Whose lives have been shattered after the senseless loss of yet another innocent child?
Without mercy, taken away by a wanton act of violence.

I sincerely hope not, for the sake of your soul.

I hope I never have to stand at another checkpoint,
Never have to help form a baseline,
Never patrol the streets or countryside,
Never again, have to sleep in a hot, cramped land rover,
I do not want to be looked at, as though everything is my fault,
As if I was the cause, when all I am trying to do is help cure.

Let us bring an end to this,
Let us stop the bloodshed,
Surely, we can make the streets safe once more,
We can achieve this and end the war,
It's gone on for far to long,
So, let us create a lasting peace for everyone.

Tormented Streets.
1998. By G.T.

Casualties of War.

As we patrol these lonely streets, Paved with terror and pain,
Fraught with possible violence at every corner,
Each stranger, we meet a potential danger...

Our minds take a quick glimpse into the past,
Remembering times gone, and times yet to be,
When I was with you, and you were with me,
Times to smile at, memories not to be forgotten.

Each footfall watched and measured carefully,
Simply because it could be our last,
Every conversation guarded and monitored,
Always looking for the oncoming danger,
Never sure what to expect next.

We think of friends and family,
We long to be in the arms of our loved ones,
We do what we do for them and all the others,
We want an end to the troubles, and a start to peace.

The fight we fight is against an enemy without face,
A supposedly fearless enemy, who will not show themselves as we do.

All we want is a resolution to this bloodshed,
Let the innocent stay innocent and unharmed at last.

Again, my mind goes to my family and friends,
Waiting at home, worried and scared,
Many lost nights sleep, hoping that the telephone will not ring,
The real world is all that keeps us going.

Driving down the streets, looking at the faces,
Eyes filled with hate, minds filled with vengeance,
Seeing so many troubled places,
We do our job and try to save lives,
Why can't it be seen as peacekeeping like everywhere else?

We try to maintain law and order, stop what is wrong,
Yet even then we are seen as a force to be tormented and abused.

Over the years this has gone on and on,
It is time to stop and think this all over again,
The children are no longer innocents,
Their minds are not pure and free anymore.
Even when we get home, the horror goes on,
Seen in dreams and recollections, no escape from it,
It's all over TV and on the radio, more outburst's of violence,
Is there no escape from this, can we find no freedom and be set free?

Look into the eyes of your children,
See the world through their eyes; see the world as they do,
Devoid of soul, lost of emotion, drained of compassion,
Hate filled souls, all for reasons not fully remembered,
Is it worth poisoning their minds, as yours were so many years ago?

Do you really want to blind them to the truth of the future, one of peace?

Let them find their own loves, hates and prejudices,
Do not force them to experience what you did.

My mind drifts back to those days, nothing I can do, nothing I can say,
Wanting the past to go away,
Scared by what I saw, ashamed of what I know,
After seeing the inhumanity that man can perform.

It has been said that the first casualty of war is innocence,
Let us render this obsolete; let us make a fresh start,
It is time to end all of this senseless violence and hate,
Let us focus on making a better world for our future generations,
We owe it to them and us,
Their children, and their children’s, children.

1998. By G.T.

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