Child Soldiers | Teen Ink
  1. Home
  2. Poetry
  3. Free Verse
  4. Child Soldiers

Child Soldiers MAG

March 13, 2008
By Courtney Cyr BRONZE, Eaton, Colorado
More by this author
Courtney Cyr BRONZE, Eaton, Colorado
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments
View profile

Their eyes tell silent stories.
Stories that would shock even the darkest of hearts.
These eyes have seen worse than some could even dream of.
They’ve seen killing and death, and pain and suffering to extents that can be hard to imagine.
Eyes that should be learning how to read are instead being taught how to fight.
Emotionless eyes are being forced to kill in gruesome ways.
Eyes that seem to have run out of tears, because crying never helped.
Their sobs are unheard, their tears are unseen.
Children who are innocent are being ruined by men who see no hope in their government.
Men who are willing to take advantage of an irreplaceable innocence.
The eyes are deep brown.
A brown so deep you could get lost in it.
Eyes that catch attention for their beauty.
They silently tell of innocence lost and of silent tears cried.
These are the eyes of a child soldier.

© Chelsea M., Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany

Post a comment
Submit your own

Similar Articles

Previous Next
Poetry
The Top
By imperfection GOLD
Gilroy, California
imperfection GOLD, Gilroy, California
17 articles 9 photos 45 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Dream as though you&#039;ll live forever, live as though you&#039;ll die today.&quot;<br /> ~James Dean (1931-1955), American Motion Picture Actor, symbol of rebellion

View profile
Poetry
Summer Day
By Lost-In-Life GOLD
Whitby, Other
Lost-In-Life GOLD, Whitby, Other
11 articles 0 photos 299 comments

Favorite Quote:
It&#039;s never to late, if it weren&#039;t for the last minute many things would never get done!

View profile
Poetry
Alice
By Keasbey GOLD
La Habra Heights, California
Keasbey GOLD, La Habra Heights, California
12 articles 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I will no longer pray on my knees, to a god who&#039;s left me so many times. I will no longer pray on my knees, to a god who won&#039;t answer my call.&quot;

View profile
Poetry
what is it?
By stardom21 BRONZE
Suisun City, California
stardom21 BRONZE, Suisun City, California
1 article 0 photos 1 comment
View profile
Poetry
Arrival of Storm
By Anonymous
Poetry
Carry On
By BreLee SILVER
Sula, Montana
BreLee SILVER, Sula, Montana
7 articles 0 photos 0 comments
View profile

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 368 comments.

jetblue said...
on Feb. 24 2011 at 1:21 pm
thia this what every1 needs to do mad me cry
firelord SILVER said...
on Feb. 24 2011 at 12:28 pm
firelord SILVER, Queensbury, New York
8 articles 0 photos 22 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Two roads diverged in a wood, and I- I took the one less travelled by, and that has made all the difference.&quot; -Robert Frost

View profile
This reminds me specifically of the holocaust. In my English class, we just finished Night by Elie Wiesel. I think this poem definitely captures the essence of the tragic period of time. A time where we try to understand, but could never, ever comprehend unless we ourselves lived it. My hats off to anyone who survived, this poem and the tragic unspoken stories of those who's lives were cut short. :')
freedomfighter97 BRONZE said...
on Feb. 24 2011 at 12:01 pm
freedomfighter97 BRONZE, Lake Ann, Michigan
1 article 0 photos 11 comments
View profile
Beautiful!  Thank you for capturing the "eyes" of these innocent children!
RandyA. GOLD said...
on Feb. 24 2011 at 9:13 am
RandyA. GOLD, Bergenfield, New Jersey
16 articles 0 photos 36 comments

Favorite Quote:
What goes up must come down

View profile
This is great. I love this poem. 5 starts to this... keep it up
CarlaA.95 said...
on Feb. 24 2011 at 7:55 am
This is a really good poem, it opened the gstes to my heart and that is really hard to do. When I'm older I would like to help one of these kids and take him/her money and food, and clean water.
Luckylucky GOLD said...
on Feb. 15 2011 at 11:51 am
Luckylucky GOLD, Hartford, Connecticut
13 articles 0 photos 13 comments

Favorite Quote:
&#039;&#039;be nice to others,everyone is fighting their own battles&#039;&#039;<br /> &#039;&#039;only people who risk going far,know how far they can go&#039;&#039;<br /> &#039;&#039;what have you done to make your life better?&#039;&#039;

View profile

wow this is extremely nice

its nice of how you have portrayed the reality  ......... seems like you are describing a event that took place right in front of your own eyes.

Rasberry919 BRONZE said...
on Feb. 12 2011 at 6:53 pm
Rasberry919 BRONZE, Pink Hill, North Carolina
1 article 1 photo 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I can do all things through Christ who strenghtens me.&quot; Phillippians 4:13

View profile
Wow! I loved your poem. I love how you can touch someone's emotions....Good Job!
Alexandrietteia BRONZE said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 8:58 pm
Alexandrietteia BRONZE, Ocoee, Florida
2 articles 0 photos 3 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Experience is the name we give our mistakes.&quot; ~Oscar Wilde<br /> &quot;I can feel what you are feeling now, and you are worth it.&quot; ~Stephanie Meyer (one of her better lines)<br /> &quot;I have been through the advances of time and I can tell you it never gets

View profile
True...better diction would be key here...overall very powerful and worthwhile though
mgraves GOLD said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 4:58 pm
mgraves GOLD, St. Louis, Missouri
13 articles 16 photos 52 comments
View profile
Agreed.  I think this is a very powerful subject and one that merits more description.  Particularly in poems, showing is as important as telling.
Chibbie1 PLATINUM said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 2:41 pm
Chibbie1 PLATINUM, Atlanta, Georgia
38 articles 8 photos 181 comments

Favorite Quote:
Reach for the the moon for if you fail you land amongst the stars :)

View profile

this is the best Poem i have ever read you definatly deserve a place on this magazine!

 

WerewolfWriting BRONZE said...
on Feb. 2 2011 at 8:49 am
WerewolfWriting BRONZE, Eerie, Nevada
4 articles 0 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Life is not about the breaths we take but about the people who take our breath away.&quot;

View profile
Hard and very descriptive. But the topic needed the roughness. Good job and well done for getting published!
Jakethesnake BRONZE said...
on Jan. 26 2011 at 1:54 pm
Jakethesnake BRONZE, Hernando, Mississippi
1 article 0 photos 96 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Read, Read... Read everything, then write.&quot;-William Faulkner

View profile
I wish that I could come back and rate this 5 out of 5 everyday! However, I am grounded, so I am not even supposed to be on now. But great job!
DRAGONBADGERZ said...
on Jan. 19 2011 at 1:19 pm
A powerful emotional poem that makes my heart heavy with sadness. It shows the terror and grit that these people see every day.
ulitim@te said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 10:24 pm
I really enjoyed to poem!! I find it funny that I have just completed a story on the same subject:) Honestly (I am not a poet) but I did like it! Especially the 'Eye that should be learning' part
VWordsmith GOLD said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 9:36 pm
VWordsmith GOLD, Toronto, Other
10 articles 2 photos 3 comments
View profile
To be honest, it's fairly amateur. Although the topic is a powerful one, I would have liked it if you used a more atypical angle or more sophisticated diction.
Nick121 BRONZE said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 7:50 pm
Nick121 BRONZE, Manhasset, New York
2 articles 0 photos 10 comments

Favorite Quote:
If you&#039;re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I&#039;ve had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don&#039;t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don&#039;t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.<br /> Michael Jordan

View profile
nice very powerful
Kiyoko GOLD said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 5:40 pm
Kiyoko GOLD, Knoxville, Tennessee
10 articles 0 photos 43 comments

Favorite Quote:
Independence is my happiness, I view things as they are without regard to place or person. My country is the world, and my religion is to do good. - Thomas Paine

View profile
 This is nice. I especially like "irreplaceable innocence" That's a good line. If you wouldn't mind, I'd appreciate it if you would check out my work!
I.Hope.You.Dance. SILVER said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 5:18 pm
I.Hope.You.Dance. SILVER, Somewhere In, Florida
8 articles 9 photos 18 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I would define, in brief the poetry of words as the rhythmical creation of beauty!&quot; -Edgar Allan Poe<br /> <br /> &quot;...All little girls should be told they&#039;re pretty, even if they aren&#039;t.&rdquo; -Marilyn Monroe!

View profile
I kind of agree with you. I also don't like the fact that you said "men who see no hope in their goverment." Are you talking about the Military?
jen123 said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 4:46 pm
this i can see when i read it...it tells a true story that most people can belive..i can understand the hurt and the aggresivness to this poem...this is a very sad poem but strong.
ellie315 GOLD said...
on Jan. 11 2011 at 3:39 pm
ellie315 GOLD, South Pasadena, California
10 articles 0 photos 86 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;And this, our life, exempt from public haunt, finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything.&quot; -- William Shakespeare

View profile
This seems kind of amateur. I like the idea of through their eyes, but it's kind of wordy and just sounds like any old poem by a teenager.