Some poems by James Milton 1. A New Jerusalem I vowed to thee my country all earthly things above I donned a soldier' uniform and left the ones I love I took another's country I stole another's land And fought there with my countrymen Who died amidst the sand And though we went there willingly War’s flame that burnt so bright Consumed my love of country And faded into night Yet now I've left the colours I see the foe at last Not those of other nations Nor enemies long past Our evil lies within us Those men who can't see wrong Who for the love of power Will sacrifice the strong They've cast away our history They've torn up all our laws And thrown our nation's young men Into endless petty wars But now's the time of reckoning And now the tide has turned Our faith shall be rekindled False idols will be burned And from the pain of suffering And from lost innocence We'll resurrect our country Regain our inner sense We will build a new Jerusalem In this green and pleasant land And our work will stand as legacy To the dead left in the sand. 2. A soldier’s lot Son would you be willing To take up the monarch’s shilling, A serving of her majesty the Queen? To continue the tradition, Through triumph and derision. Go where your Pa and Grandpa both have been. See your best friend die Whilst he looks you in the eye, To satisfy a politician’s pride? View the face of war And all that’s been before, Yet know the real villains won’t be tried? Be the one night darling Of that harlot called the press And then to be forgotten on the morrow, With their articles of glory And pay cheques, fat like rats Fed upon the images of death and sorrow. Follow in the footsteps Of two centuries of men, A banner that has flown for Britain’s freedom, Then hear of its demise Because we must all downsize, And heroes in this day who really needs 'em? Be so very blind To the one you left behind, For the needs of love are constant, harsh and cruel And when you’ve done your duty You no longer have your beauty She’s gone, left you behind to play the fool. But, if my words won’t hold you back And you’ve set yourself the track To serve your country well, without regret Remember this When the hunting dog is old He is cast into the cold I hope your master, unlike his, does not forget. 3. The Eagle and the Lion The Eagle and the Lion conspired, Though one was dumb and one was wired, To steal the land of midday sun Where Jackal ruled and black gold runs They formed their plans and primed their guns If you’re not fighting, war is fun! Rifles barked and cannons roared We sat at home and soon grew bored Cities burned as planes dropped bombs The cameras filming, off and on And when dust settled, battle done The Eagle and the Lion had won But Jackal was a cunning foe Silver tongued and none too slow He mocked the duo, briefed the press Called “this wicked war a mess? Sent out agents, issued orders Unleashed chaos in his borders All throughout this sorry land Brave young men fought hand to hand Soon bodies of both sons and lovers Were shipped home to their grieving mothers And while both countries’ leaders lied Their nations’ youth ignobly died. 4. Children of a lesser war We are children of a lesser war A petty skirmish, nothing more, The bluebirds won’t sing over The white cliffs of Dover For us, There’ll be no fuss Just a footnote in our history No Vera Lynn, no mystery No Nazis in the countryside Or turning back the evil tide Just tattered gaps in people’s lives Grieving wives No fly-by at the Cenotaph Sing songs where people laugh Through the Blitz, Defying Fritz We envy them that cause Not like our wars No equals in Afghanistan No tussles man to man No Luftwaffe in Iraq No Bletchley Park Just car bombs and smell A cut price hell No Winston, just windbags We won’t see waving flags Just body bags and sad parades Until a sordid peace is made Nothing solved Nothing gained 5. Going Home There’ll be no extra drill now, No PT and no bull, No stagging on in barracks Or going on the pull. No gripping from the Sergeant, No scoff in the canteen. You’ve done your final duty, Your record’s true and clean. And the boys will gather round now To see you on the plane, Away from dirt and misery, Away from dust and pain. Your family will be waiting, Your girl will wear her best, As we take you back to hearth and home To lay you to your rest. 6. A soldier’s prayer God give me a bird And some booze and a bed And a tv with Sky In a house by the Med And my mates in that same house With birds and booze too And a town down the road Where there's something to do Not this bunk in this camp The sand and the waste That gets in the air Gives all food the same taste Nor the heat and the wire The grey sullen looks As we tab down the streets Past the shops and the sooqs Or the threat of an ambush Being bumped unaware The car bombs and mortars This slow grinding fear For the bullet that gets you's Not the one that you hear And the blast from the bomb Never reaches your ear In fact God forget it I see I've been greedy In war as in life It don't pay to be needy Birds and booze come and go That's a plain simple fact Just get me home safely My bollocks intact 7. One man went…. One man went to mine, Went to mine a meadow, And the meadow was filled with green lush grass And a house with a dog And a family In the meadow that the man mined Ten men marched across, Marched across that meadow, And one blew up ‘cos he stepped on a mine And it took off his foot but the others were fine And the guns opened up and the family died In the meadow that the man mined And now there’s no meadow In the meadow that the man mined, And no travellers walk And no people talk And no crop is raised And no animals graze In the meadow that the man mined. 8. Death or Dishonour We give no thought When we’re caught short In London or in Rome We just nip in With a cheeky grin To a shop or someone’s home But if nature calls When you’re under fire And you reckon you’re a gonner You face the most Unsavoury choice Between death and dishonour 9. Purgatory I run into the road Escape my mother’s arms, The sudden noise has frightened me, Then something knocks me down and We close in on the house, Cock rifles and disperse Someone rushes from the door, A shot cracks out, they fall and I look down at the map Surrounded by my staff, Hopelessly thinking there’s no way out. I can’t do what they ask and I stand upon the podium, Face down a hostile crowd As I speak about democracy, A greater good for all and Pain rips me from inside. I call out to my mother. She runs into the road where The hard air cuts her down and Christ’s sake stop firing! It’s just a child and mother. I rush to see what I can do But then the bomb goes off and A man is by my side His eyes downcast, he’s scared to talk He takes me by the arm and says ‘Your son was on patrol …’ and The jeers wash over me My party hates me and the press Lampoons me with my error, Why am I the one to blame? and It stops all of a sudden and I know for a moment that this is hell. I wake again in the arms of my mother Who holds me tight ‘cos the soldiers are coming. 10. Child’s Play Sing a song of Helmand A death trap for the Brits Car bombs on the corner And food that gives you squits The money for the lad’s kits Was squandered on MPs So instead of helicopters We have ornamental trees 11. Just because you can.. I sat south of Fallouja by What once had been a factory Producing God knows what But now it housed our boys Lined up in rows of camp beds Surrounded by a sea of kit Pistols, rifles, smoke grenades And other deadly toys. Hank was sat beside me From the State of Alabama United States Marine Corps, As solid as a brick But Hank for all his muscles Was sharper than a razor If your job is bomb disposal You last longer if you’re quick “How you doing Sir?? he asked me As he rolled a smoke beside me We sat there in the morning air Stayed silent for a while Then Hank lit up his cigarette Pulled out two cokes, gave one to me Took a pull and then he turned And said this with a smile “I’ve been out here for near a year, I’ve lost a friend, I can’t drink beer, There are no girls, not much to do, The locals don’t like me or you? (A pause, but Hank’s not finished yet, He took a drag on his cigarette) When I get back home to the States To see my girl and family I’ll lead a special campaign so That wars like this don’t start To have inscribed above the door of Congress and the Senate and the White House, these eight words That everyone should learn by heart. ‘Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.’ And I said ‘Good idea Hank.’ 12. The Wife’s prayer Teach me not to love you I don’t want to grieve Please turn my heart to stone Every time you have to leave Packed upon a plane Taken from my life When you become a warrior I would not be your wife I would not sit awake at night I could sleep sound instead But your absence is too obvious Alone in this empty bed Every time I’m at a party I’ll remember you’re not there All those moments you would comfort me Run fingers through my hair The good times and the bad ones When we’d shout at one another I miss the things you mean to me Husband, friend and lover Kill off my flames of passion Let each die out in turn Then teach me how to love again Upon your safe return