‘ Come and join the Army ‘
A sign displayed outside
An office on the High Street
A Sergeant sits inside

I sit there grimly watching
The young lads going in
Hardly more than schoolboys
Devoid of most bad sin

The eager look upon their faces
Grins that turn to beams
‘ Don’t sign up ‘ I want to shout
But can’t destroy their dreams

‘ See the World and have some fun ‘
The Sergeant will contrive
Then sent to some forsaken place
How many will survive ?

The odds are not in favour
In ‘ War zones ‘ where they’ll fight
To stay alive in daylight
But worst of all at night

They see the life as glamorous
It’s better than the dole
They’ll see the World and have some fun
But will they come back whole ?

It’s not so bad in training
You know it’s not for real
But once on active service
The fear inside you feel

You’ll hear the shout: ‘ INCOMING ! ‘
The whistle of the round
And hope it doesn’t land near you
You’ll pray without a sound

You’ll think if you are quiet
And keep your eyes closed tight
The round will never find you
And ‘ Kiss your butt goodnight ‘

So forget the boozy NAAFI
The beaches and the girls
Ignore that deskbound Sergeant
As battle now unfurls

This is the reality
Of war in far off places
Eating dirt in foxholes
Deployed from lonely bases

But people make their own mistakes
You cannot tell them how
I was that eager soldier
But look at me right now

Wounded then discharged
My dreams they all were shattered
Confined inside this wheelchair
The end of all that mattered

So I watch them all go in
Their dreams are still intact
Decide that I won’t interfere
I’m going home in fact

I’ll see them on the TV
When ‘ Body bags ‘ return
And cry a silent tear for them
Will young men never learn ?