Last Friday was the International Day of Peace. This week, I wanted to post a powerful song about peace that I remember first hearing on an oldies station when I was growing up.

Here is The Original Caste’s  “One Tin Solider:”

Lyrics:

One tin soldier
Listen people to a story
That was written long ago,
’bout a kingdom on a mountain
And the valley folks below.
On the mountain was a treasure
Buried deep beneath a stone,
And the valley people swore
They’d have it for their very own.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,
Go ahead and cheat a friend.
Do it in the name of heaven,
You can justify it in the end.
There won’t be any trumpets blowing,
Come the judgment day,
On the bloody morning after
One tin soldier rides away.

So the people of the valley
Sent a message up the hill,
Asking for the buried treasure
Tons of gold for which they’d kill.
Came the answer from the kingdom,
With our brothers we will share,
All the secrets of the mountain,
All the riches buried there.

Now the valley cried with anger,
Mount your horses, draw your swords
And they killed the mountain people,
So they won their just rewards
Now they stood before the treasure
On the mountain dark and red
Turned the stone and looked beneath it
Peace on earth, was all it said.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,
Go ahead and cheat and friend,
Do it in the name of heaven,
You can justify it in the end.
There won’t be any trumpets blowing
Come the judgment day,
On the bloody morning after
One tin soldier rides away.

This sad song is about people fighting so that they can find a “hidden treasure.” At the end of the song, the last standing soldier finds the treasure which is merely a stone that says “Peace on Earth.” The irony of it all. 😦

How does this song make you feel when you hear it?

May we live our lives in ways that promote peace. ❤