Return of a Son

They took the boy right out of a my bosom

to fight a war at the far end of the world.

Whose, where, for who were the questions not to be asked;

They said it was warranted by higher authorities.

But when did God want children to fight battles?

May be I am just an ignorant mother,

who prays for her son’s safety.

Where do I look for the signs of cessation,

when the whole world is bleeding to death,

for one reason or another?

How long do I need to wait for the war to stop,

which had started without a cause?

And one day the wait ended.

They said they were sending him back to me

I was elated by my fate and his.

I waited by the end of the road for his return.

They did return, but I knew not whom

They took him as a boy

and returned pieces of a man in a casket.