THOUGHTS OF A SOLDIER

by MAURICE HAIGH

Comrades in a huddle in the mud and rain
Cold winds blow to chill the bone
Haggard faces etched with pain
Feeling helpless and alone

Dawn has come tinged with red
Barrage starts with unholy sounds
Cries over the top heralds many dead
Broken bodies without names are found

Anguish and pain from pinched faces of white
Stretcher bearer with aid for the wounded
Comrades move forward no thought of flight
Enemies are taken and victory sounded

Relief for a moment to catch a breath
Tom And Jack, missing, God, such a loss
Letters to home informing of death
Scattered graves with a simple cross

I pray it will end and bring us peace on earth
No more missing faces no letters to send
Dawn brings a silence hostilities cease
Back home to England the land of my birth.

Maurice Haigh
April 2004