Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Remembrance at school


Like so many before me, I did not know
Why the Queen needed saving.
We were told to remember, but they forgot
To tell us why the war;
And I dared not shuffle.
Heads bowed, eyes closed ..
But no one said a prayer;
Only the ticking silence
While we stood abashed,
Till someone said the oath.

I was moved by the words’ wild beauty,
The autumnal tinge of immortality
For those who grew not old.
And I stood transported,
With silly, pricking tears,
Eight years old and feeling
The immeasurable burden of time.

No comments: