By the year of 1914
The war had begun
They would go to places never seen
And the World War would be won

There were five keen young men
Who boarded the train that day
Excited for adventure
And the part that they would play

Cards were played
And drinks were poured
All was well, or so they thought
For death was at the door

Long before they arrived
They smelt the terrible stench
That later revealed in all its pain
The horror of the trench

No excitement was there now
As fun gave way to fear
Rats and blood and guts and smoke
There was no mercy here

One by one their young hearts
Were dumbed and dulled with grief
When the General cried, “Over the top”
It came as a relief

They stood together one last time
And with quivering knees they held their line
And slept walked through the web of wire
Towards the blasts of enemy fire

One by one they lost their lives
Except for one, and he survived
And that was me, but every day
I wish that on that field I lay