Remembrance day

As it is Remembrance Day there are a few things I would like to share. This is a picture of my great grandad who fought in the First World War. Unlike many, he did make it home, only to die in an Influenza epidemic. The boy standing at the back was my grandfather, who lied about his age and also fought in the First World War. He survived and went on to fight in the Second World War, not being around for much of the childhood of his four children. I guess I'm lucky as I watched my grandad grow old and cherish the years he had with his grandchildren. Today I remember him.
The other thing I want to share is the beautiful poem Megan wrote this time last year (aged 10)

Death in a Trench by Megan Holmes

The howling winds from the East knive us,

Gusts tug on the death trap that is barbed wire,

Misery is written across our faces,

Explosions set the trenches behind us on fire.

Mud sucks at our boots as we trudge along,

Rain cuts and pierces our cheeks,

Flights of bullets streak the silence,

As we dream of the home that we seek.

We hear distant booms and bangs of canons firing,

Thunder crashes like cymbals next to our ears.

We hear quiet curses from men behind us,

And some start shedding tears.

This racket drowns out the hoots of gas shells,

Which descend briskly down behind us in the trench.

A green sea starts flowing from the bomb,

My friend splutters, breathing the terrible stench.

He cries out as the gas enters his lungs,

He fumbles around in his bag for a gas mask.

He falls to his knees screaming,

He staggers to his feet, a difficult task.

Later...

I lift the stretcher with my friend sprawled across it,

I regret leaving for battle in the first place,

His eyes are empty of life and happiness,

I can never again look into his face.

She says that much of it was 'borrowed' from a variety of war poets, but I was impressed.