Scars of war

A hundred years and more

The carnage of The Great War

Carving landscapes, bodies and souls

Leaving horrific scars beyond our control!

Soldiers’ scars run deep, for some - eternal sleep,

Family lines slashed, now our legacy to keep

Cemeteries plotted across the earth

Quilting the countryside, identifying their worth,

Headstones scarred with names, or sadly many not!

For those that lay where they were shot,

Stunning monuments dominate the skies

Acknowledging their heroic demise.

Countryside disfigured by ancient shell

Trenches that became tombs of hell

New growth bandaging the earth’s skin

Aesthetics covering a time so grim!

Still weeping the poison of that war

Expelling splinters of death from its core,

Hands across the nations,

Hands across the generations

Tending the scars born of yesteryears!

Never forgotten in the hands of volunteers.

Beastly marks now etched with beauty

The many souls abruptly relieved of duty!

The scars of yesteryear - the scars of now

Lessons learnt? Tell me - pray tell me -how!