A poem for our fallen soldiers -OT-

[Guest guest]

I was thinking about all the poems you guys write. I have written

a good bit of poetry and stories, though I rarely share them. In

high school, my English professor asked each of us to choose a poem

from a list she had created. Once we made our choice, she asked us

to read the poem, ponder it, and then write a reply to it. The

reason I am telling you this is because the poem I decided to pick

was " The Young Dead Soldiers " by Archibald MacLeish. As I read it,

I felt the poem in my heart. I didn't have to think or ponder on

this poem to know how I wanted to approach the assignment. Funny

thing is, I though I may fail the assignment because I didn't really

write that much!! I actually won an award for it. I wasn't happy

that she entered it into a poetry contest, but at the same time, I

was glad she did. Only because it brought to light the sentiment

this country was based on. The part I answered to in this poem

starts or has " we say " in it. The rest is the original poem.

I would like to dedicate this to all of our fallen soldiers......

Enjoy......Marina

THE YOUNG DEAD SOLDIERS...by ARCHIBALD MACLEISH

The young dead soldiers do not speak.

Nevertheless, they are heard in the still

houses; who has not heard them?

They have a silence that speaks for them

at night and when the clock counts.

They say: We were young. We have

died. Remember us.

We say: We are young. We are old.

We remember.

They say: We have done what we

could but until it is finished it is not done.

What could we possibly say?

They say: We have given out lives but

until it is finished no one can know

what out lives gave.

They say: Whether our lives and our

deaths were for peace and a new

hope or for nothing we cannot say;

it is you who must say this.

We say: Your lives were given, and for

some taken, for peace and a new hope.

Your work is finished and you have

lived or died, not in vain.

They say: We leave you our deaths.

Give them their meaning. We were

young, they say. We have died. Remember us.

We say: We take your deaths and

give them their meaning.

We are young, we say. We are old.

We will always remember.