Dove

Dyed grey and hidden in a sack

you witnessed the full rawness of the war

as you were carried innocently

by my thirsty soldiers

who were betrayed

by their static love

as you were

 

AAG 1916

 

Medal

Blood in the water

Blood in the sea

A medal for the general

And fuck all for me

 

AAG 1916

 

The Pleasure Whistle

Like the dawn chorus

Your whistle breaks

The mourning air

With its shrill shrill bark

 

As we climb the short hill

That lies in front of us

We kiss our mothers

Perhaps for the final time

 

AAG 1917

 

Untitled

The sheet of steel

That covers my Black Bible

Does not hide my heart

It only protects

My love for you

 

AAG 1917

 

Homeland  

I arrived at a squalid dock

On a squalid ship

And received a squalid welcome

You note in your letter

That my teaching post

Has been left open for me

But what else is there to teach

Our future soldiers?

 

AAG 1918

 

Harvest

Never has the harvest felt so fresh as it did today

Let us work until we share the sky with the new moon

And then and only then celebrate my return

 

AAG 1919