(This poem was inspired by the current impasse in the Middle East conflict,
where both sides have shed so much blood in the search for peace)
‘Let loose the dogs of war’
By Harry Riley
Let loose the dogs of war
Let bullets fly and bombs rain down
We have to kill some more.
It’s not our fault, the world must know
We cannot stop, we must not fail
We owe it to our unborn child
He has to see, he has to know
There was no other way
Let loose the dogs of war
The time has come for us to win
To show them all that we know how to die
Our cause is just!
We have the right to murder and to maim
In our Lords name we shell and shock
And blast them all to hell
They will not learn, we can’t give in
The talking has to stop
Let loose the dogs of war
Have we not heard this before?
We’re born to love and hate and fight
And always it is us who’s right
Our Nation’s God our Nation’s Pride
Where is it now as time moves on?
And the desert sands run red with blood
In the Gaza Strip once more
Let loose the dogs of war
As I grew up I waved my flag
And thought to fight and win
They taught me that our Empire was
The greatest man had known
Yet now I know, as I grow old
The future’s looking dim
Our Empire is a dirty word
I must not say its name
Let loose the dogs of war
We have no choice, the devil calls the day
But will we never learn
To see ourselves for what we are
To give God’s Grace to other souls
To show we know the way to help
And not just how to burn
~~~
‘For God and Monty’
By Harry Riley
The lights went out and the tanks rolled in
Through Europe’s open door.
The Nazis blazed an evil trail
Of victory they were sure
“Retreat! Retreat!”
The generals cried “The enemy’s all around
Retreat! Retreat! We must give way
They’ve got us licked
The game is up
They’ll blast us to the ground”
One soldier though was firm and strong and would not heed the call.
His, was a voice they all knew well
“We’ll stand and fight and win or die and bellyache no more
I have a plan
In the desert heat we’ll trap their tanks
And with God’s good grace we’ll all win through
And even up the score.
Now Rommel was the Desert Fox
And his Panzer troops were legend.
No one could check his onward march
Until that day he met his match
In a stubborn man with a two badge cap
And a passion for a battle
He marked a thin line in the sand
“Enough of this!
It’s here we stop and it’s here we stand
With God’s good grace we’ll fight our way
Through the blood and the tears
Every hour of the day”
And they did it all for King and Country
And for themselves
And for God and Monty
Through the fear and the strain
And the death and the pain
At the turning point in World War two
At the battle of El Alamein
~~~
‘Ode to Marie Anne’
By Harry Riley
In a cottage by a river
Down a valley deep and wide
Lived the daughter of a killer
From his sins she tried to hide
Marie-Anne had kept a diary
Since the day he went away
As she tried to find the reasons
For his actions on that day
In the township people waited
Flags were flying- bells were ringing
Happy crowds of people singing
Bands came marching
Trumpets blaring
Open coach came into view
Could the victims tell
What struck them?
As the bullets swiftly flew
Would they die in that grim way?
Watching people waving cheering
Knowing it was their last day
To a cottage by a river
Down a valley deep and wide
Came a stalker, entered
Breaking, smashing, wrecking
Found the diary he’d been seeking
Coming home the young girl cried
She had named the guilty killer
In the record as her father
On the green banks of a river
Stood the young girl waiting hither
Soon the stalker came to join her
Both were wading in the water
As it rose to take them down
Daughter held on to her father
Smiling as he tried to drown her
On that bright and sunny day
Those two bodies washed away
By a valley deep and wide
Lightning flashing, thunder crashing
River rising, pine trees falling
Earthquake shaking, cottage breaking
All goes under, bar the swimmer
Choking, gasping, arms outstretching
As she makes her fight for life
Comes the morning, sun is shining
In the valley all’s returning
Marie-Anne is saved from drowning
By the young man passing by
He has found his life’s new meaning
As she thanks him, breath-returning
Marie-Anne, the killer’s daughter
Starts a new life full of laughter
With her partner by the river
In the valley deep and wide
~~~~
(A poem for Remembrance day)
Remember me
Duty called and I went to war
Though I’d never fired a gun before
I paid the price for your new day
As all my dreams were blown away
Remember me
Once we, like you, would laugh and talk
And run and walk
And do the things that you all do
But now we lie in rows so neat
Beneath the ground
Beneath your feet
Remember me
In mud and gore and the blood of war
We fought and fell and move no more
Remember me, I am not dead
I’m just a voice within your head
~~~
Remember Me: the full poem is used by singer-songwriter Jackie Trent for her Remembrance Day and ANZAC Day tribute on her own website: www.jackietrent.com.just click on the home page: ANZAC photo...
