Fresh Students

New fresh young students in droves off the buses

Wide-eyed looks of hope and expectation

Welcomed through the gates of hell

Unsuspecting of what lies within

Innocent looks

Carrying all your possessions in little carpet bags

A dingy quilt slung over your shoulders

Yet I have seen your faces before

In other parts of the world

Youth knows no horizons

After two weeks of parading in the dust of the field

Of mindless drilling and marching in sun and sweat

Of no meat, no showers and no clean clothes

And only meager soup and noodles

You are ready and eager

To sit in my class

My only question, as you sit and smile so innocently

How can I help you?