Poems of the Era
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A Poem for Remembrance Day
"The inquisitive mind of a child" Why are they selling poppies, Mummy? Selling poppies in town today. The poppies, child, are flowers of love. For the men who marched away. But why have they chosen a poppy, Mummy? Why not a beautiful rose? Because my child, men fought and died In the fields where the poppies grow. But why are the poppies so red, Mummy? Why are the poppies so red? Red is the colour of blood, my child. The blood that our soldiers shed. The heart of the poppy is black, Mummy. Why does it have to be black? Black, my child, is the symbol of grief. For the men who never came back. But why, Mummy are you crying so? Your tears are giving you pain. My tears are my fears for you my child. For the world is forgetting again. Author unknown A Brown Slouch Hat
There is a symbol, we love and adore it, You see it daily wherever you go. Long years have passed since our fathers once wore it, What is the symbol that we should all know? It's a brown slouch hat with the side turned up, and it means the world to me. It’s the symbol of our Nation—the land of liberty. And as soldiers they wear it, how proudly they bear it, for all the world to see. Just a brown slouch hat with the side turned up, heading straight for victory. Don't you thrill as young Bill passes by? Don't you beam at the gleam in his eye? Head erect, shoulders square, tunic spic and span, Ev'ry inch a soldier and ev'ry inch a man. As they swing down the street, aren't they grand? Three abreast to the beat of the band, But what do we remember when the boys have passed along? Marching by so brave and strong. Just a brown .... J Albert & Son, Sydney, 1942 |
NOT IN VAIN
Let us gather to remember as a pledge of our respect, At the 11th hour of the 11th month A time also to reflect. To honour those who went to war for peace for all of us. So many courageous lives have been lost Remembering is a must. To preserve their fight for freedom A memorial to those who died. On Remembrance Day we all unite Patriotically with pride. Rain or shine we’ll stand together As so many have had to do, To rid the world of turmoil To bring peace for me and you. Because we’re proud of our great country And peace must be maintained In memory of those fallen So their fight was not in vain. Barbara McCabe 11.11.2004 Tribute to ANZAC Day
With their hair a little whiter, their step not quite so sure Still they march on proudly as they did the year before. Theirs were the hands that saved us, their courage showed the way Their lives they laid down for us, that we may live today. From Gallipoli's rugged hillsides, to the sands of Alamein On rolling seas and in the skies, those memories will remain. Of airmen and the sailors, of Lone Pine and Suvla Bay The boys of the Dardenelles are remembered on this day. They fought their way through jungles, their blood soaked desert sands They still remember comrades who rest in foreign lands. They remember the siege of old Tobruk, the mud of the Kokoda Trail Some paying the supreme sacrifice with courage that did not fail. To the icy land of Korea, the steamy jungles of Vietnam And the heroic battle of Kapyong and that epic victory at Long Tan. Fathers, sons and brothers, together they fought and died That we may live in peace together, while at home their mothers cried. When that final bugle calls them to cross that great divide Those comrades will be waiting when they reach the other side. Ken Bunker |