A Poem From a Union Soldier's Boots

I am leather, soft and worn out from use

I have seen horrors and I have seen victory

I have trudged on through mud

I have splashed through creeks running red with blood from the fallen

“War is hell”, someone said

Then I guess I’ve been to hell and back

You’ve never seen things like I’ve seen

You’ve never been where I been

I have stood upon many battlegrounds

Grounds soaked with the blood of human beings

I have been cleaned more times than I can count

Cleaned of dirt, mud, blood, and tears

I have seen too many tears streaming down faces as young as 16

Pray, children, pray you will never see those people or be those people

I have walked through tragedy.