F*ck Me When the War Is Done, and Other Poems by Ninnachel by Elwin Fortuna

A Soldier's Life Is Never Fair

A soldier's life is never fair.
We march in blazing sun or freezing air
And every part of me is sore
In a way I can't ignore.

Bruises just from this ill-fitting armour
Cuts and scrapes from a scuffle in the night
A bash on the head, a dent in the helmet
My cloak has a great rent in it
My face is scarred now.

A soldier's life is never fair.
We walk in burning wastes and stinking air
And every part of me burns --
Many happy returns!

My head's buzzing from this foul mist
My mouth is dry, my lips unkissed,
(Somehow that's the worst, belovedest),
I'm alone in the night,
And nothing is right.

A soldier's life is never fair.
I'd walk to you tomorrow if my heart would dare
But every part of me resists
That's what you get when you enlist.