Stand in silence out of duty and for love for all the brave.
Stand in silence in the memory of all who fought and died.
Stand in silence where you're working for the men they could not save.
Stand in silence or their suffering's denied.
Every second of this silence cost at least a million lives;
From the century that taught the world a thousand ways to kill,
Making orphans out of children, making widows out of wives,
Our whole species, some may say, has fallen ill.
As we stand in contemplation of each nation's bravest men,
Just two minutes every year to mark a debt we cannot pay,
We should look within our consciences and ask the question '"when"
Will we learn this senseless slaughter's not the way?'
Every time you buy a poppy for the aid of those who've fought
You give honour to the heroes who have given all for you
Every war has seen the failure of the lessons that were taught
Faces turned toward the old and not the new
Ninety years now since the ending of the "War to end all Wars"
But we never seem to learn there has to be a better course.
If you think a bomb will settle things just take the briefest pause
And try to talk before you turn to force.
For a Kaiser or a madman or to save democracy,
For the soldier in the battle every bullet is the same,
He can be an Emperor's minion or the free-est of the free,
He pays the price but doesn't own the blame.
Stand in silence - just two minutes doesn't seem too much to give.
Stand in silence and remember that they gave their lives for you.
Stand in silence for the innocents who have lost the chance to live.
Stand in silence for a chance to start anew.
Author notes
We do not have a "Veterans day" here in the UK the closest approach is Armistice day, commemorated in many countries of course, November the 11th when at 11am we stand in silence to remember all those who have given their lives in any of the services. It is also taken as a day to note and honour those who still serve and those who did serve but did not die. The poppy refers to the Earl Haig appeal by the British Legion where paper poppies are sold to raise money for the British Legion the major service charity here.
In a list
A contest entry
- Lest We Forget by Cupcrazy.
1750 points, ended November 23, 2008, 17 entries
Bronze trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Memories of Sacrifice - Winklings #142 by Lyndon.
1750 points, ended November 17, 2008, 15 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - in memory of those who served and fell and those who survived by camo.egg.army.gurl.
1800 points, ended June 9, 46 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me honestly what you think, good or bad.
Comments
1 - 38 of 38
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Poet
Amen. Great write. But the sad truth is that war has, is and always will be a means to settle disputes and jolt man back into the reality of who we really are. Not gods, but mere humans with a streak of greed and hate. History, do we ever learn from it? even now rivised for the dreamers.
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I've read it too Dan and I agree....it should not be buried.
I stand in silence with you all....Lu
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"Two Minutes"..Brilliant
This wonderful poem puts the whole madness of war into perspective.
Stand in silence - just two minutes doesn't seem too much to give.
Stand in silence and remember that they gave their lives for you.
Stand in silence for the innocents who have lost the chance to live.
Stand in silence for a chance to start anew.
This is a fitting end to this superb piece of "powerful poetry" that has everything a good poem should have, It deserves more than being buried here in "All Poetry", it should be read by everyone....Dan
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nice take on humanity and very contributive
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crying
i well know about the poppy my mum is from england...here in american just after the world war II the president at the time proclaimed that Armistice day was not properly giving honor to those from both wars so it was changed to veteran's day...it here on Nov. 11th as well..but i decided if i dont do the contest now...we would end up without having a poem for the ceremony...cause i would be too caught up with everything going on for it...
good luck
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I recall commenting before on this one I loved it then and my mind has not change one iota since Excellent then and now
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as always an incredibly good work, n oooo I love the rhythm
nice job, thanks for sharing
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Wow, Very touching, jus great, rendered me speachless again, What is it with you? Keep writting and congrats on the tophie.
~ Chelsey ♥ -
Excellent
"He pays the price but doesn't own the blame." -- Yes.
So well thought out.
Always outstanding poetry.
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Thank you. Having dated a Viet Nam veteran, having friends in the current conflict and being a veteran myself, this piece gives me hope that one day others will remember the cost of what we live with and how high a price those who go to war pay. Thank you for this reminder.
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Two minutes in a year is not much is it? Your tribute to the fallen is extremely well done.
Sheila
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Very touching
This one moved me. I though this was very powerful:
"From the century that taught the world a thousand ways to kill,
Making orphans out of children making widows out of wives,"
A thousand ways to kill indeed. There are only a few minor gramatical errors:
"Making orphans out of children,* making widows out of wives,"
Notice how I added a comma there ^ I think that makes it flow just a bit better.
"Every second of this silence cost at least a million lives;"
I believe "cost" should be "costs"?
Besides that, I wouldn't change a thing. You're on a roll. And this is very true. "Stand in silence" for all who have fought for the better of us all. My head remains bowed.
I look forward to seeing some more of your miraculous talent.
Have a good one.
Regards,
- A.C.
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Thank-you for a very detail comment and critique, on the grammatical (note double m
) you are correct on the comma, I am terrible at punctuation I usually do not punctuate my poetry at all, I shall add this comma, but on the cost/costs you are wrong, think it through ...
If each second costs even one life I would certainly not take that second, the problem is it has already cost them. Part of the idea of the two minutes silence is to remind people that killing is wrong (all killing is wrong, just sometimes it is better than the alternative) and we must do all that we can to avoid any further such cost!
Again thank-you for an excellent comment.
Jeff -
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Oh, sorry, that was stupid , not to mention I spelled grammatical wrong! Wow, am I the worst commenter ever.
Nonetheless thank you for correcting my, erm, correction.
Regards,
-A.C. -
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Not stupid at all, I got to write it and have time to think it through
Sorry for the tease about the spelling error I couldn't resist, it was an excellent comment.
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This one, makes much more sense to me Jeff. I like it very much. Thank you for sharing it. You have a talent with writing no doubt about that.
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Thank-you, this poem took a long time to "happen" for me, I knew what I wanted to say but sometimes it isn't easy to let others see that, I am glad we can see eye to eye on some things at least, and thank-you for the compliment on my writing, I do not know that I merit it but I certainly welcome it.
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Congratulations for the trophy with this piece. I think it is well thought out and composed. I also think the epanaphora in the last stanza makes the poem.
Love,
Amera♥
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Congrats on the Bronze - a job well done -a fine write-
Bumpy
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A topic that I'm very torn on. On the one hand, no man should ever kill another man again. On the other hand, bad men are going to force situations where killing becomes necessary. Merchant ships are being hijacked more frequently with ransoms in the tens of millions of dollars. Send the bastards responsible into the next life post haste! The rest of us shouldn't have to hassle with these cretins. For civilization to prosper, more people need to become more responsible... Ach... one could write volumes on the dilemma and never make a dent.
Your poem at once condemns the war but praises the soldiers which is beautiful in itself. You have a heart of gold on a universal scale and do a lot to make this a cohesive community on a more "local" scale. Thanks for all you do!
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This lovely poem gives the reader a brief history lesson and much food for thought. The repetition in the beginning and closing stazas are a perfect framework for this piece.
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wonderful tribute
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very nice
this was very nice and oh so true.every word every line has such punch,such truth.this is a very powerful piece.it has great flow.it hits facts on the head.i'm not much for this type of write even if i wrote a piece myself.the whole thing makes me sick.leaving the soliders over in Afganistan is the pits an Iraq it's time to bring them home 7 years is enough.great job good luck in the contest and i think i'll bookmark this.
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A very beautiful piece, poignant and touching. I enjoyed the repetition and the brutal honesty of the piece. Thank you for honoring all those who have fought and died. Hugs, Bunny
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It's beautiful. I love the repetition ("stand in silence"). Personally, I love it.
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Poignant write which touches me profoundly.
'Where have all the flowers gone?
Gone to graveyards every one,
when will they ever learn?'
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This is a 'no punches pulled' poem and you have done the subject justice. An emotive subject that you have handled well and made a pleasure to read. I will be standing at 11o'clock on the 11th November and remembering why I am alive and give thanks for their sacrifice.
Sue
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As long as there is politics rather than humanity there will be war. Yet it is not the politicians who lay down their all for their countries. This piece is to the honour of those who sacrificed their lives and those who fought for their country only to be left in a living death of psychological trauma or in poverty by the state they were willing to die for, we should be ashamed.
Nicely penned Jeff
Jem xxx
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Excellence
One of my many passions is reading of the courage and futility that was WW1 One would have thought that after that we would have learned Sadly not
A excellent piece that does the subject honour
fortunately there seems to be a reawakening in the UK to observing the twp minutes silence This brings joy to my heart
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An Excellent dedication for all who have served in the name of Patriotism, but even more so for those who died needless deaths. I am a vetearn of the US Army, 8 years active duty...I know nothing of fighting in real time war, but I do know that when I served, I served willing to do whatever was necessary to honor my country...it's a shame the political officers of this country cant learn something from the soldiers of this country...our elected officials honor their bank accounts...Veterans honor the beauty of a free country...who cares how much money they have.
Your words honor me, as they have touched my heart also. Nicely done.
Shelly
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This is a very touching write. I dont believe we will ever learn though. People seem to think nothing can be obtained or kept unless it is fought over. We have seen this time and time again in history. I look forward to reading more of your work, And I am glad that I found this one. I will take two minutes, and most likely even more, to give thanks for those who fought for us, who died in this war.
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When you had read it to me, I was beside myself, as I now read it alone, and by myself, I cry. This is truly a piece and a half. Indeed I know you will rework it to fit the right voice, Yours.
Well done.
Love you
Passions
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He pays the price but doesn't own the blame. thats my favorite part of the poem. I usally dont like poems about war but this poem says a lot of good emotion and (whats the word...) honesty.
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I usually don't like war poems but this one is a true masterpiece and penned with passion. I really like the epanaphora in the first and last stanzas. Were you an officer in that war?
Love,
Amera♥
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I've always used anaphora but I believe the terms are interchangable
I was far too old already by then
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Superb
Aye, 'tis a fine write, indeed, with which I agree.
Imagery; rhythm and rhyme are just fine. This also reminds me of a poem which I wrote, called: "Blues of Night". Here's a link: http://allpoetry.com/poem/4301709
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I LOVE IT!!!
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