I stand alone , in mud and blood .
The sky is dark full of smoke and dust . My comrades lay silent beneath my feet .
A voice shouts out in the Distant gloom
are we ready boys ?
My hat lays low upon my brow ,
my hands tremble from the cold
I look left and right ,
and the motionless bodies rise once more
Our eyes lock for just a moment , and then I look towards the huge climb
My heart pounds , it’s in my ears, so loud now I can’t hear
I grasp the mud and with all my might I climb the walls , my prison for these few days
As I reach the top I let out a shout and gun fire greets me
The darkness fades into pastures green where my love ones wait for me

I may have fallen , but where I lie a poppy lives
So when you see the fields so red , just cast your mind to all who sacrificed..

If you should ever come my way , just pause a while and stay
For many years I have lain
I once was young and unafraid

Fearless was my middle name
Left my familiar land of green
To a far more desert land

No birds sang
No flower raised its head
For all was dead

We reached the ravaged land
Not knowing what we would find
Only a red thin line that stretched  and grew

Knee deep in mud and topped with snow
We knew it would be slow
Huddled together to keep some warmth
Amongst the chatter

Lonely voices wept
And the months crept
Still no sign of a end
I lost many a friend

When days are long and nights even longer
The dreams of home are all you have
To return is all you desire

But here I lay
On pastures past
In a country I do not love
Many more beside me
So stay a while and cast your mind to a bright summers day  
When I was young and unafraid and
Fearless was my middle name

What is an adolescent?
Stare at the faded walls of my old bedroom,
Breathe in the air of my old home,
And I’m a kid again.

What is a grown-up?
Look up at the sky full of stars,
Savour its familiar vastness,
And I’m small again.

What is a professional?
Come back to my old practice room,
Find those sweaty shirts and socks,
And I’m a trainee again.

What is old age?
Rock on the rocker like rocking a swing,
Stretch out my arms to catch the wind,
And I’m young again.

What is the world?
Blue and green, some say, inanimate,
But it lives and breathes for me, changing,
And I’m alive again.

Sometimes hearts
break in specific ways,
we will apply bandages
but the scars will form vivid,
worn by us all as memory
that the best burn bright
but brief