What Victory?

Nina Robbins

I am a victim of this senseless war For me, nothing will ever be the same as before. You say you’re our savior and are setting us free, But then why have we fled from you across the sea?

“It’s a liberation,” you nobly proclaim, But then why is my home going up in flames? Why is there death raining down from the sky? The grief of our nation can be heard in one cry:

“Ні війні!1 No to war!” But our cry for help is cruelly ignored. You have liberated me - from my home, My life, my marriage, and all I called my own.

So many lives have been destroyed, But to our oppressors, our cries are just noise. Soldiers fall and children weep How many more souls are you willing to reap?

And what about those trapped under your rule? Those who see you for who you are: cruel.

And what about those whom you sent to the slaughter Without food, comfort, warmth or water? Armed with missiles and tanks and guns, But what good are those if they have nowhere to run?

Men from both sides are forced to fight For a horrible cause they both know is not right. And because of one man’s cardinal sin, They both die for a victory neither will win.

And now I ask you: what was it for? What was the reason for this senseless war? How can you watch this horrible plight that you caused, and then fall asleep at night?

So for now I can only pray That victory will throng in the streets someday. But I’ll say, “What victory?” for I know the truth: It was no victory if it killed our youth.