Be No More

 

drilled and drilled

and twiddled

 

be a hero

 

months of monotonous life

with smalltime

religious education

 

be a hero

 

patted and

complimented

 

be a hero

 

death struggles

 

be a hero

 

smiles of the girls

and old men

 

be a hero

 

months of

life meals

 

be a hero

 

a little war

growing within

 

be a hero

 

lavish expenditure

 

be a hero

 

secular education of

pickles and cheese

 

be a hero

 

fed and caressed

 

be a hero

 

for the youth

had believed

old ideas

 

 

   Mike Ferguson
Illustration Nick Victor

 

[found in The Red Badge of Courage – Stephen Crane]