Come in, Join the Queue

Five foot six inches,
Come in,
Join the queue.
Eighteen and a bit,
Come in,
Join the queue.
Fit and tall,
Young and strong,
Come in,
Join the queue. 

A boy unmarried,
Still in school,
Come in,
Join the queue.
A mother's only son,
The father's in the grave,
Come in,
Join the queue.
A boy of luxury,
Still at home,
Come in,
Join the queue.

Five foot six inches,
Is that all?
What about brains and heart and brawn?
Did anyone notice that
Boys are just boys,
And soldiers should be nothing to them but nursery toys.
Did anyone notice that
Children are not men,
And neither man nor child 
Deserves a blood-stained end.

If there should be another war,
Just know that
A war is a war between flags and guns,
Not between lives who have barely begun,
Don't tell them it's exciting,
Or trick them into thinking it's right,
Don't rob a nursery of a filled bed tonight.
These are our boys,
Country born and bred,
Don't send them away
To the dark abyss of death.


Against child soldiers and propoganda for underaged conscription.