Life As It Is

When life itself seems lunatic, who knows

where madness lies? In all my years, I’ve seen

life as it is with misery and woes.

There’s pain and hunger -- everything between.

I’ve been a soldier -- seen my comrades fall

in battle with no glory, just a sigh.

They saw life as it is and through it all,

they died despairing, only asking, “why?”

Not why they died, but why they lived, they asked.

Perhaps to be too practical is mad;

To seek for treasure where there’s only trash;

Or to surrender dreams that you once had -- 

These may be mad, but worst of all -- to see

 life as it is, and not as it should be.