To Stay Alive In All Seasons
by Michael Doyle

We give up our courage
Trying hard to discourage
Ourselves or any others
Among those we call our brothers

But not a single John Wayne aspiration
Would save Pearl Harbor or our nation
The men present mostly fought to stay alive
Belly crawling through smoke just to survive

Seldom has a situation been more dire
There were some still fighting who had caught fire
Some boys were barely old enough to be called men
Would never take another breath or cry again

The attack came like the world turned insane
They scattered, stumbling in their last pain
That is among those who could still walk
Others would remain behind alive, left to talk

Survivors were left to tell this story
A story of how real war is; there is no glory
Instead, a thousand images of courage and the dead
A million bitter memories playing on in as many heads

Some modern-day cowboys would not return
Ravaged by war, they watched as their brothers burned
These are the lessons that are difficult to learn
These form the scars from tears difficult and harder to earn

The Arizona capsized with men trapped inside
This was a reality from which they could not hide
They told each other this would turn out right
If only they could make it home that night

They didn't and remain as ghosts there today
A memorial to war to urge us to find another way
To live beside those with competing reasons
It's better to stay alive in all the seasons

This was a day not just of dreaded infamy
December 7th is a dark stain on history
When brave men died from an enemy unsuspected
Though some in the know knew it was expected 

Seldom have truer words been spoken
Then those that invoked a sleeping giant awoken
Never has sadness so filled the heart
Then, that tragic day at the great war's start

(c) December 7, 2024    Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved