I've maxed out. Closed this blog. |
America's Answer R.W. Lillard Rest ye in peace, ye Flanders dead The fight that you so bravely led We've taken up. And we will keep True faith with you who lie asleep, With each a cross to mark his bed, And poppies blowing overhead, When once his own life-blood ran red So let your rest be sweet and deep In Flanders Fields. Fear not that ye have died for naught; The torch ye threw to us we caught, Ten million hands will hold it high, And freedom's light shall never die! We've learned the lesson that ye taught In Flanders' fields. So many were inspired by McCrae's poem that they wrote poems in response, like the one above and this darker one below. While they both exemplify patriotism and appreciation, they express very different reactions. In Flanders Fields (An Answer) C.B. Galbreath In Flanders Field the cannon boom, And fitful flashes light the gloom, While up above; like eagles, fly The fierce destroyers in the sky; With stains, the earth wherein you lie, Is redder than the poppy bloom, In Flanders Field. Sleep on, ye brave, the shrieking shell, The quaking trench, the startled yell, The fury of the battle hell, Shall wake you not, for all is well. Sleep peacefully, for all is well. Your flaming torch aloft we bear, With burning heart, an oath we swear To keep the faith, to fight it through, To crush the foe, or sleep with you, In Flanders Field. |