Stand Down Soldier

Stand down soldier, the war is won -

the bullets ceased to sound

and all the urgency of combat slipped away.

Your battle scars, seen and unseen,

tell all too well the story

of your existential fight. But now,

no orders shall command your state;

no diktat from a foreign lord

wreak havoc born of blind authority.

Pull down your guard, within, without,

and let the balm of your own self

nurse back to nought those bygone days,

and peace reclaim her rightful place

to reign, with quiet knowing,

in the chambers of your unencumbered heart.