What do foolish men do
When all the wolves are dead?
Why - they find another kind of wolf
One in a man skin instead.
The Dogs of War they hunt in packs
And jackals fight over the bones,
Only the innocent suffer and die
And families lose their homes.
When the power and the fury are spent,
The last sword sheathed, the final challenge sent,
When all there is to say is said and done,
And yet what has to end has not begun,
Though all the warriors are laid to rest
And gifts are given at their bequest
There’s still one deed that’s left undone,
To find the victor and ask, “Who has won? ”
But no one asks that question,
The words are left unsaid,
For there never is a winner
If all you have is dead.
June 1993 - revised March 2003
Josephine Dunn
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-dogs-of-war/
