Army Brat

An army brat, a pain indeed,
never destined to succeed,
from place to place,
from camp to camp,
with soldier family I did tramp.

Two years at each, and every school,
how could I know the golden rule,
that only those with silver spoon
should try to reach up for the moon.

Flung from class to class to learn
that army brats were last in turn
when teachers chose just who to teach
mere passers by were out of reach.

In moving on from town to town.
free from the things that tie one down,
I collected all the scraps they threw
and kept them in my knowledge stew.

For mix and match was right for me,
I reveled in variety,
although they only shared a bit,
I grabbed the lot, and made it fit.

And so with different tidbits fed
and patchwork learning in my head,
I used my mind to make them whole
and thus came owner of my soul.

Each single thought that I now bear
arises from near everywhere,
for none have been my corner stone
with constant change, one stands alone.

Sometimes I think that I would be
a very, very different me
if I had had a stable home
and not by life was forced to roam.

But I’m the master of my mind
and not a replica of kind,
I am myself for all to see,
there is no other just like me.

An army brat, a soldiers child.
A spirit born to wander wild.
A mongrel of the forces kind.
I now reside within my mind.

Ivor G Davies
Copyright © | Year Posted 2015

Poem

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Konos Avatar
September 10, 2015 at 6:29 PM
I do believe the term brat is an American thing...if not then we swiped it from you....Good to see ya...things very quiet here...there is a contest for OLD poets...I may give it a go but haven't thought of anything rolling around in my head that I need to spill out...I have had little to no drama in my life...and that's a good thing....CHEERS....
Godwin Avatar
September 10, 2015 at 5:22 PM
Oh, my I thought I only had 1 page of poems to make it through. The title of this poem caught my eye, and, again, oh my. I was raised an Army brat (US), learned good-bye before hello and I'm convinced it led to my early discovery of writing ,,, CayCay
Konos Avatar
April 23, 2015 at 5:25 PM
Well an English brat at any rate! LOL
Konos Avatar
September 10, 2015 at 6:18 PM
Indeed
Godwin Avatar
September 10, 2015 at 5:23 PM
People know it, but don't get it ... CayCay
Davies Avatar
May 2, 2015 at 5:19 PM
Not sure if all people know but a 'Brat' is the common term for offspring of servicemen. (Though I hope the poem explained that?)
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