High on the Ridge;
Visible from miles around.
73 thousand names,
Of those with bodies never found.
Portland stone
And red iron brick.
The names of the dead
Lie heavy and thick.
Men who lived but silent now;
Preserved forever for all to see.
Now memories from a time before,
Those who Died to keep Europe free
With birdsong of lark;
And kestrel in hovered flight.
Rest in peace,
The long never ending night.
Jul 7, 2017
Jul 7, 2017 at 1:08 AM UTC
High on the Ridge;
Visible from miles around.
73 thousand names,
Of those with bodies never found.
Portland stone
And red iron brick.
The names of the dead
Lie heavy and thick.
Men who lived but silent now;
Preserved forever for all to see.
Now memories from a time before,
Those who Died to keep Europe free
With birdsong of lark;
And kestrel in hovered flight.
Rest in peace,
The long never ending night.
Written May 2017 after a visit to the battlefields of the Somme
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