He stood, oak walking stick <br />and trusted Shepherd by his side. <br />It was a view not for mere mortals, <br />life was not stingy with rewards, <br />such as this view from Obersalzberg. <br />He'd baptised it Wolfsschanze, <br />with which he had expressed the thought <br />that it would make a launching ramp <br />for the great wolf, son of the old eagle. <br /> <br />Today was graduation for ten officers, <br />Sturmstaffel, also called SS, <br />they'd demonstrate the ultimate of all: <br />Life for the Fuehrer and the Fatherland. <br /> <br />The training had been tough and cruel <br />for man and beast, all Shepherd dogs, <br />each candidate was given a male pup <br />to raise, from weaning time, with utmost care <br />to teach the tricks a German dog should know, <br />until the very day they'd stand before their god. <br /> <br />The presentation was an eye-pleasing success, <br />the Fuehrer watched as dog and man performed, <br />until the Obersturmbannfuehrer's sharp command, <br />they froze in place, awaiting graduation. <br /> <br />Then, Adolf Hitler, undisputed leader of the Reich, <br />he raised his arm in a salute, and with a voice <br />both soft and urgent gave the ultimate command: <br /> <br />'Use only both your hands and your new combat knife, <br />and cut the throat of your companion here and now, <br />it is the final test of loyalty to me.' <br /> <br />There was a deadly silence then, an eagle hovered <br />above the valley, boyed by rising currents, <br />and as it watched, the ten cadets reached down to touch <br />their charges by the neck, with grim determination. <br /> <br />Ten pairs of trusting eyes looked at their masters, <br />as love flowed from within to meet the blue-eyed tears, <br />and death that day could not be understood. <br />Perhaps the Fuehrer would explain it all, one day<br /><br />Herbert Nehrlich<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-test-of-loyalty/
