boys die to be men

boys die to be men
tombstones and ashes line pavements
from cradle to grave, a pattern of
lives short-lived and ruined
along the way of men
a fly on a wall
to appease the master-minds
at war, with the minds of boys
in body-bags
dying to be men at war, to wage

with a conscience
conscious of the life of war’s income
the light of love’s embrace
when patriarchy holds flag
and warlords run amok
at justice in daylight, a mob
rewards fear, buys silence
with the blade
pillages the fruits of freedom
deferred, by night
scorching the fields of peace with aid

the earth mourns, the skies tear
for boys dying to be men
at the hands of boys
man-made, armed and dangerous
fighting because they are men
man-made, willing to kill
to keep the peace
dying, killing, to be men
of territory
!gda