Unspoken Words | Teen Ink

Unspoken Words

February 17, 2015
By MysticMusic ELITE, Waterloo, Other
MysticMusic ELITE, Waterloo, Other
116 articles 0 photos 118 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.&rdquo; -Mae West<br /> &quot;It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.&quot; - Leonardo Da Vinci


A finger slids down the crisp white page

stopping ever so often

at familiar names

and not so familiar names

and then wondering

how they felt, picking up a gun,

how they felt, sludging miles through mud, bugs, and infections,

how much they had enduring in a day that lasted months

continuing on even years after leaving the battlefield.

 

It makes one wonder,

what it's like to pull the trigger,

what it's like to aim at a human being,

what it's like, when blood splatters,

and people on both sides fall, never to rise again.

 

It makes one wonder,

how did it all lead to this,

and why wasn't it stopped?

Why didn't the leaders call a truce,

after millions of men had died.

Why were they continuing to fight a war for dominence?

If those in charge had ever pulled the trigger themselves,

and see humans fall, every where-

a grotesque view in every direction

even the usually blue sky draining of colour,

becoming a blank, cold grey.

 

It makes me wonder,

looking at the number of deaths,

how so many lives, led in so many different ways,

filled with wonders, happiness, tragedy and struggles,

could be contained in a neat book,

filled with creamy yellow pages,

having withstood only a few decades,

and yet having brought so many emotions to entire countries

when being read.

 

History teachers taught about propoganda, 

the twisting of truth to the public to the minority's advantage,

and that makes me wonder.

What did the families of the dearly departed,

really know about the life of their beloveds,

on the other side.



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This article has 2 comments.


on Mar. 11 2015 at 8:25 pm
MysticMusic ELITE, Waterloo, Other
116 articles 0 photos 118 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.&rdquo; -Mae West<br /> &quot;It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.&quot; - Leonardo Da Vinci

Yes, that was the effect I was aiming for, and I focused on imagery and the whirlpool of emotions behind the tragedies. I also tried to increase the seriousness as one read past each line, and turn it into a sort of run-on sentence to give it more impact. Then it slows down near the end, and gives an epiphany. I usually do write poetry and not prose listed as poetry, but I thought I'd experiment with it. Thank you for the lovely feedback.

Beila BRONZE said...
on Feb. 25 2015 at 11:55 pm
Beila BRONZE, Palo Alto, California
3 articles 0 photos 516 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.&quot; -Mark Twain

I like the sentiment in this poem and some of the wording is really nice. There's a memorial in a park near my grandmother's house to fallen US soldiers with names carved up and down every side of an enormous boulder. Every time I see that memorial with my grandmother on a walk, I think of all the people who died, but also of all the grandmothers left behind whom no one ever even realizes existed. Every person is someone's world, and I appreciate that you wrote about that. My only critique is that at times, this felt more like prose with line breaks than poetry. In the future, maybe play around a little more with what you want to say in your head and decide which direction you want to take it. On the other hand, maybe this is just your unique style.... :)