Killing Machines

Only eighteen and conscripted to the military,

No choice of mine it was the norm at this time and scary,

Barely out of school and still wet behind the ear,

Too young to watch an adult movie or have a beer,

Ready to be trained to kill another nation’s child,

Leaving their family with the loss and our side smiled,

Dejected as I waved goodbye to my family that day,

My girlfriend was there too and my friends to stay,

Off to a military camp for 2 years and trained,

Based in Kimberley 900 Km to be mentally stained,

Infantry intelligence was my involuntary military calling,

Not knowing what was in store for our adult life’s stalling,

On my new bed listening to songs of memory and waiting,

Corporals, Sergeants screaming at youngsters scared, hating,

Nobody knows what or who, or how, where to show,

Disconnected from family and treated like shit dough,

Moulding us into military men without feelings,

Chasing and forcing without asking or dealings,

Forced to wear uniforms and carry death,

Trained to march in unison without relief,

Bushwhacking, crawling under barbed mesh,

Ripping our faces, shredding our young flesh,

Many a soldier destroyed mentally for gore,

But ensured that we are ready for war,

Your rifle is your wife; the military is your mother,

Drilled into our minds and begins a smother,

Firing our weapons at fabricated enemy,

Re-loading and screaming with venom,

Learning to hate people without knowing them,

Indoctrination and mental instability forced,

Not ourselves but killing machines endorsed,

Spread across African borders to kill on sight,

Innocent, women and child death is our right.

Many a friend made and many a friend lost,

As told this is for our nation, family and worth the cost,

Under the promise of protecting our nation,

Living off measly dehydrated and shared rations,

We were the soldiers of our South African nation,

Proud and ready to destroy, our new minds creation,

All others are the enemy and terrorists,

To them we were the same to kill and create hero lists,

Friends and time with family are lost forever,

Memories of the past in our conscience lost never.