War Poems

Last Monday was a very good discussion day because we discussed war poems. This was very exciting because I had never read a war poem before, and the poems we read were also very good. My favorite poem from that day was "Here Dead Lie We Because We Did Not Choose" by A.E. Housman.
Out of the poems we read I only found "Here Dead We Lie Because We Did Not Choose" to show support towards fighting. The very short poem follows:

Here dead lie we because we did not choose
To live and shame the land from which we sprung.
Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose;
But young men think it is, and we were young.

When I read this poem for the first time, I merely skimmed over it to get a general idea of what it was about. The last two lines unexpectedly grabbed my attention and made me reread the poem a few times before putting it down.
When I read the poem, I imagined the end of a war movie with the son of a lost one standing over his father's grave, reading the words on his tombstone. The father is telling his son that they (he and his fellow soldiers) are dead because, instead of the complaining about how unfair their country is, they chose to have some pride in their country and fight for their country. This is because when you have something great and beautiful you believe in, your own life becomes a small concern. Your only desire is to reach that goal you were trying to pursue. However, the young usually think of their own lives as a great deal to worry about and always want to live for the moment. Nonetheless, these young men were so committed to their dream that they threw away living for the moment and instead lived for their country. They were young, but they were very brave.
This poem touched me a lot because, even though I don't support the idea of war, I greatly appreciate what soldiers do for our country. They put their lives at risk and throw away every bit of freedom that they have. For what reason? I don't know. Maybe it's to fight for their country, or it's a promise they made to their parents. For whatever reason they do it, they do it and they should be greatly appreciated by everyone.