In Memoriam

We will remember them…. Along the wooded lane I stroll, Mossy walls of brick line the way; And ash and pine overhang - In the breeze they rustle and sway. I round the corner - ahead I see, Through the mist, the church so grand; The churchyard: so calm and tranquil, And under the lychgate I pause and stand. The air is chill; I glance around. For those who’ve lived, and here no more - Crumbling headstones in memoriam stand, “Do not forget!” their silent cries implore. Through the door I see them stroll, Welcomed by rectors long since gone; What joy and sadness found they here? Their names for all to see inscribed in stone. Fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, Villagers and neighbours, and others unknown; Friends and family we loved and mourned – Their names for all to see inscribed in stone. The war memorial, standing proud, They that died, to us are known - Reginald Holmes and many more. Their names for all to see inscribed in stone. . John Grantham killed in action, Laid to rest in Bapaume, France; And others whose names on plaques displayed, Their names for all to see inscribed in brass. I look across the idyllic scene - All we knew and many unknown, Now rest, so peaceful, tranquil and quiet, Will we remember the names inscribed in stone? We will remember them……. This is a much revised version of an earlier poem of mine. It is written so that it can be read at a Remembrance Day Service. In the UK this would be the nearest Sunday to November 11th - the date when the armistice was signed between the allies and Germany at the end of the1914-1918 war - on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month..