Red Black Green

Red Black Green

Red for the blood as it bloomed, as it ran,

Black for the bullet holes, shrapnel and bangs,

Green for the hope that life might carry on,

Pinned to your lapel for those lives long gone.

You stand alone by that long list of names,

Forever remembered, forever famed;

You hold your tongue, for two minutes you pray

All found their peace at Eleven that day.

Red for the boys in the snow and the mud;

Terrified uniforms splattered with blood,

Black for their wretched and honour-less death,

Green for the future they gifted the rest.

You lay the poppies in wreaths by the stone;

You bless all the ghosts that never came home.

Jennifer Pickup (11/11/16)