Believe! Believe, learned Sparta
In the age of Pericles and Socrates;
Of Plato and Aristotle;
The age of Art and of Thought;
The age of Ares: Olympian god of war

Be brave! Be brave, noble Sparta.
In your infinite quest for distinction in battle
War becomes life as life becomes war.
And, from each other, they take
That which you hold most dear.

Bemoan! Bemoan, dear Sparta
For your armed childhood soldiers
Who come of age in wars of folly.
Who needlessly tender their lives
For your empyrean victories and exalted defeats.

Bereave! Bereave, sad Sparta.
Mark well the fresh tears wept
By the duty-bound mothers of Greece
Who willingly provide their sons as fodder
In your eternal search for glorious conquest.

Beware! Beware, bold Sparta.
Storms approach from east and west.
And mind you well the deadly breath of Boreas.
Armageddon draws ever near
As neighbors grow weary of endless challenge.

Behold! Behold immortal Sparta:
Ancient City of Greece, capital of Laconia.
You have stirred the ashes of defeat
Until your dreams of resplendent glory
Become but haunting shadows
In the dying embers of distant realm.

. . .And your Gods have vanished.

.

Daryl G. Kruse © 1999