Oh tell me young soldier By the armour you bear, For you fight for your country And your conscience is clear, Have you seen my true love In your battles afar? For he’s long gone from me In the arms of the war. He’s as handsome as you are Though his gaze has more candour And his touch remains gentle In the play of his ardour. You have taken his promise My body and womb At the point of your bayonet By the light of the moon I have seen your bare flesh Felt the pain of your thrusting For neither protest nor prayer Could spare me your lusting. So tell me young soldier With your hand on the trigger Does my true love survive me? Will my end be quicker? See the dawn breaks And the rooftops are glinting You must wipe out the night And stifle my weeping. Now I know by your silence That my love is sundered From us both, and our lives Ineluctably squandered. So finish your duty And secure your promotion Has the colonel not told you To efface crimes of passion? Then survey your achievement, You’ve known death and worse, Vouchsafe my bereavement Live on in my curse. 1995 |