Understanding Soldiers from Iraq
by Spc. Ken Comstock

People think they understand
(but they really have no clue)
the life of a soldier
and what it is we have to go through:
Crying families, crying children,
"Daddy, please don’t go away!"
Smiling, you say, "Things will be fine,"
while inside you’re crying, praying to see another day,
fighting for those who cannot
and for those who burn what you swore to defend,
constantly questioning life’s purpose,
hoping it will all make sense in the end.
There’s no one to talk to
except the angels that guide us through the fire,
frozen in a silent scream,
being led by God’s divine power.

I have nothing to do
but wonder why I am here.
Is it out of pure patriotism,
or is it strictly out of fear,
the reasons why I do this?
For faith, sacrifice and love,
and to defend our nation?
When push comes to shove—
hunger, homesickness, anger, sadness, fear,
thirst, exhaustion, loneliness, and disgust—
sometimes I feel small, helpless, and alone,
in a world hard of finding trust,
with nothing to do
but wait for another day.
God is my refuge,
and to him I always pray.

We are soldiers; men of honor
holding steadfast and strong without fear.
Even though most of us soldiers
are not yet old enough to have a beer.
Even so, we will be haunted
by the images left in our heads,
by the phantoms, the ghosts
and the nightmares we will have in our beds.
You will look upon us as a child,
but men we are—more so than some,
and we will continue to grow
even when the fighting is done.

Always being asked:
"Why put yourself through that?"
If only I had an explanation;
If only they could think back
to a time long ago
when a Man suffered for all our sins…
Are we as soldiers
any different from Him?
Maybe then
their understanding may begin.

Spc. Ken Comstock, 23, was riding in a Humvee near Samarra, Iraq, when it hit an explosive device. His forehead was smashed into 500 pieces, and he barely made it home to the United States, where he is now recovering. A week before "it happened," he emailed a poem to his mother, asking himself why he was there and pleading with people back home to try to understand what he was feeling.

If you would like to read more about Spc. Ken Comstock check out this page: http://www.bruderhof.com/articles/Ken-Comstock.htm