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Vera Kilgore Heilig: Her Poetry Lives (2017) H. Morris Williams, Marie Law Haire

There Have Been Wars

There have been wars since Lucifer decided

That he should be God.
Brave men have fought for what they

Knew was right.
The men who fought against them fought

From greed or lust for power.
Three wars in my lifetime.

The first, remembered dimly, when we children

Chanted
“Kaiser Bill went up the hill

To take a peek at France”
And “Huns” became a word to whisper with

Delicious shivering.

The women kissed the doughboys sad adieus
And smiled while their hearts beat “over there.”

They turned the dark clouds inside out
And served their families meatless meals and

Wheatless meals

And knitted socks and sweaters till the boys
Came home.

Some never came,
And some who came were maimed

While others wore their scars inside.
But all were proud.

Their war had made the world safe for

Democracy.

But Hitler rose and Mussolini, Hirohito too
And slant-eyed pilots dropped their bombs

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