A Soldier's Book of Poems: Poems 11 & Twelve.
Live in Peace
What kind of world is this
What kind of people are we
Where people live in hiding
Where people are not free
Imagine what they’re going through
Just to live day by day
Is this showing our humanity
To make them live this way
Political instability
And countries far in debt
It seems we can’t control
Sometimes we even regret
Terrorists are out killing
They think that they are just
Would you want them as your neighbour
Would you give them any trust
What kind of world do we live in
Where children die every day
Would you want your children
Growing up in this way
We have to do something
About the world in its current state
There’s far too much killing
Too much hunger, too much hate
We have to end this insanity
We have to write a new lease
We have to stop this madness
We need to live in peace. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Piece of Ground
In the heat of battle
Men are dying
Some are wounded
Some are crying
Smoke is rising
In the air
Panic sets in
Everywhere
The mission is
To seek and destroy
They give the order
To deploy
The enemy is
Straight to the front
They’re on the prowl
You’re on the hunt
Two sides collide
In the dead of night
Full of anger
Full of fright
In the confusion
You charge ahead
You look behind
Your friend is dead
When the smoke clears
And you look around
What have you gained
But a piece of ground.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As noted before, I did not place my name and date of completion with my earlier poems. However, all of the poems from my book are copyright protected.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I would be starting 1991, with a new Military Trade, a new wife and a new life. That is where I left you on my last post. After changing my trade/occupation, and completing my new trades training, I and my new wife headed to Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Masset, British Columbia (BC), Canada. Isolated in the former Queen Charlotte Islands, now known as Haida Gwaii. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Haida Gwaii, and would move back there in a heartbeat, if my wife would only agree. Within the first year of our marriage, my wife was pregnant. The Military Hospital in Masset is only equipped to handle routine medical procedures. Therefore, specialty appointments, like an ultrasound of an expecting mother, are completed in Prince Rupert, BC. It is a 6 hour ferry ride, or the 45 minute flight. Unfortunately, the procedure identified our first child to be Stillborn. Not a happy event, or time, to go through. Two months after the loss of our first, I completed my first and only tour to CFS Alert. Which, is located on Ellesmere Island at latitude 82°30'05" north, 817 kilometres from the North Pole, in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is the northernmost continuously inhabited place in the world. The next year, my wife gave birth to our first daughter. Because the Masset Hospital did not have the level of resources to handle some issues, My wife was transferred to the CFB Esquimalt, BC, Military Hospital. This policy is in place because if any major issue arose during birth, and there was bad weather, you would not be able to fly to the Hospital. Therefore, my wife was flown to Esquimalt two weeks before the due date.
Earlier that year, I had fallen and suffered a broken left Ulna. After 16 weeks, in 4 separate casts, I was flown to Esquimalt to see a Surgeon. My wife spent 1 week in Esquimalt prior to my coming down. During my appointment with the Surgeon, he indicated that the arm has not been set correctly and I would need to have a steel plate put in. I asked the Doctor when that would be, his answer was "today, in three hours". My response was, "normally Doc, I would like that answer. Unfortunately, my wife is in labour as we chat. So, I need to be with her. We made my surgery appointment for the next month.
Once in labour, my wife was transferred to Victoria General Hospital, where she gave birth to our first child. Just two days after returning to Masset, the Unit Sergeant-Major called my house and asked me if I wanted a posting to CFB Esquimalt. A few months later, we were living in Langford, a community part of the Greater Victoria City. So here I was, an Army/Land Element Soldier, now posted to Maritime Forces Pacific Intelligence. I certainly did foresee that coming when I was an Air Defence Detachment Commander.
I will continue my story in the next blog.
Ed
E.J.R. Hardy.
