Terry Ireland Poet Rhyme

Near Bad Lauterberg, 1982

It was the sign that stopped us
And then we saw the stone
Dedicated to an escapee
Who had died there alone.
We  read the inscription
All the time being aware
Guards in the tower watched
 Every move we made there

Halte Hier Grenze!
(Stop this is the Border)
The sign displayed 
To avoid any possible disorder.
Behind the wire were the mines
Then the strip, totally bare of green,
Raked and swept twice a day
So new foot prints can be seen.

In full view of all
The observation towers
Directly in line with the stone
And commemoration flowers.
He is standing there watching us
Bins lens reflecting glare of the sun,
Slung over his shoulder 
His loaded automatic gun.

Is he the one who shot the man to
Stop the attempted freedom bid;
If it wasn’t him for certain
One of his colleagues did.
Halte Hier Grenze
What was it all about 
Not to stop people going in 
But to stop them getting out.

Such a state of desparation 
That so many did their best,
And so many failed and died
Just to live in the West.
We took the mandatory photo
And then we didn’t linger,
Just turned our backs and walked 
After giving him the finger.

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