Washington ( CNN ) -- What does it feel like to kill a man ? James Lenihan of Brooklyn knew . He fought in Europe in World War II and he killed a German soldier during a battle in Holland . He described how it felt in a poem : . -- - . I shot a man yesterday . And much to my surprise , . The strangest thing happened to me . I began to cry . -- - . So begins `` Murder : Most Foul '' a work that echoes poetry about war in the tradition of William Shakespeare and borrows its title from the bard 's `` Hamlet . '' As powerful as the poem is , the story behind it is also fascinating . Sgt . James Lenihan returned home after the war , got married , had children and made a career as a salesman for the meatpacking industry . If he ever wrote any other poems , his son , Robert , and daughter , Joan , who still live in Brooklyn , do n't know of any . In fact , they did n't know about this poem until after their father died . They found it when they were going through his possessions . Robert and Joan Lenihan found two typewritten pages , each with a copy of the poem . It was unsigned , but Robert believes the poem was written by his father and later typed up by his mother for safekeeping . He says the poem talks of the killing happening in Holland . James Lenihan served in Holland with the 104th Infantry Division , which battled German units there . The poem portrays a soldier very upset about taking a life : . -- - . I knelt beside him . And held his hand -- . I begged his forgiveness . Did he understand ? -- - . But even while he describes the shooting as murder , he makes clear he had no choice : . -- - . It was the War . And he was the enemy . If I had n't shot him . He would have shot me . -- - . Robert Lenihan said the poem is a bit unlike the father he grew up with . A man who could be a `` tough customer '' if need be . Not someone tormented by a fleeting , albeit from an intense moment on a battlefield in Holland . `` I 'm just starting to appreciate how much he suffered only now in this part of my life . When I was a kid , like if he yelled at me or something , I 'd say , 'Well Dad 's being cranky , ' '' Lenihan said . He said that even though the incident in the poem took place nearly 60 years ago , it resonates today and should let young soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan that they are n't the first to face such emotional turmoil as this . `` That feeling they may have of regret and pain and shock of what they 've done . It shows they are not alone , '' Lenihan said . CNN sent James Lenihan 's poem to Georgetown University Professor David Gewanter , who has published several books of poetry , including `` War Bird , '' published last year . Gewanter called `` Murder : Most Foul '' `` accomplished . '' In an e-mail to CNN , he said the poem `` is good , and its truths are that of experience and some literary traditions . '' Robert Lenihan sounded surprised when he heard Gewanter 's analysis of his father 's amateur poem . `` I 'm very deeply touched , '' he said . `` For an expert to assess it that way and make such important comparisons -- I 'm amazed and quite touched . '' The poetry professor said Lenihan 's poem reminded him of a famous portion of Shakespeare 's play `` Henry V '' : . -- - . From this day to the ending of the world , . But we in it shall be remembered -- . We few , we happy few , we band of brothers . -- - . But Gewanter said it perhaps most closely resembles `` The Man He Killed , '' a work by Thomas Hardy written at the start of World War I . In that poem , Hardy writes that the soldier and the foe he killed might have shared a drink or loaned each other money had they met somewhere other than a battlefield . James Lenihan 's poem ends not with talk of loans or drinks , but a darker scene . -- - . I shot a man yesterday . And much to surprise . A part of me died with Him . When Death came to close . His eyes . -- - . To read the entire poem , go to www.dcoe.health.mil/blog/article.aspx ? id=1 & postid=102 .
It tells the anguish felt by those who lost a man in battle . It was the only poem that Lenihan is known to have written , his children included . A professor calls it ` ` accomplished , '' reminiscent of well - known works .