Arlington Poems | Examples

Tomb of the Unknown

Tomb of the Unknown

Twenty-one steps south down the black mat
Turns and faces east toward the tomb for twenty-one seconds
Turns and faces north, changes gun to outside shoulder and waits twenty-one seconds
Marches twenty-one steps up the mat
Turns and faces east for twenty-one seconds
Turns and faces south, changes gun to outside shoulder and waits twenty-one seconds
Twenty-one steps south down the black mat
The cycle is repeated
Three hundred and sixty-five days a year
Twenty-four hours a day

White gloved hands snap through the shoulder arms
Sharp green uniforms show no rank
Dark sunglasses hide the solemn stare of the guard
Select members of The Old Breed maintain vigilance
Over the marble tomb

The crowd must be silent
All must show respect
To those who are unknown
To the faceless and nameless
Who sacrifice all

Arlington

The broad banks shifting 
the stone slabs across 
the deserted plains of 
Arlington white tombstone 
lined nestled beneath 
decorated wreaths calling 
upon sudden hint of braising 
sunshine gleaming over falling 
leaves catering to yesterday 
reaching for tomorrow and 
yet silence abode the marble 
timings while old glory 
flickered between the calm 
breeze hints of sadness falls 
by the way side while tears 
stain the workers cheeks 
so we’ll crafted mastered 
beyond masonry moments

Arlington national cemetery

Visited daily 
in remembrance of the fallen 
markers stand row after a row

On Visiting Arlington Cemetery

Row upon row of white crosses speak
Silently of the insane frivolity of war.
Arlington is the stark reminder I seek
Row upon row of white crosses speak
Solemnly of soldiers lives at their peak,
Their courageous voices heard no more
Row upon row of white crosses speak
Silently of the insane frivolity of war.

written July 15, 2021

Arlington

Arlington

Row upon row
as if grown from the green carpet
they stand starkly white at attention.
Mute sentinels in the drenching sunlight.

Although rooted and still,
in martial regiments, they march endlessly
to the joining of blue sky and green grass carpet.

Those who come here
find the etched places, the names;
the beginnings and the endings.
Those who are here
cannot see, but only rest.

At least that is what we who are the living think,
although perhaps those who are here
Turn restlessly at night and dream.

Flag draped, veiled tears,
percussion cap volley,
the little girl sobs
wrapped in the arms of her mother, his wife.

Let the Souls of Arlington Be At Peace

Quiet and gentle breezes blow beneath a salient sky,
As the spirited  pride of courageous hearts, like white doves fly,
In tenderness we all salute the heroism  of the fallen,
As the sombre and empty stand on fields of loving green.
On the 13th of May, 1864 The first soldier is laid to rest,
He was Private William H. Christman of the 67th Pennsylvania Infantry.
Since then over 400,000 brave souls have be buried here.
On the 20th of May 20, 2016 Barrack Obama signs a bill into law 
once again allowing the ashes of WW II WASPs to be laid to rest at the military cemetery.

Those lying here will never suffer pain, their souls are free,
The Light will always shine on those welcomed to eternity.

Let the Souls of Arlington Be At Peace

Quiet and gentle breezes blow beneath a salient sky,
As the spirited  pride of courageous hearts, like white doves fly,
In tenderness we all salute the heroism  of the fallen,
As the sombre and empty stand on fields of loving green.
On the 13th of May, 1864 The first soldier is laid to rest,
He was Private William H. Christman of the 67th Pennsylvania Infantry.
Since then over 400,000 brave souls have be buried here.
On the 20th of May 20, 2016 Barrack Obama signs a bill into law 
once again allowing the ashes of WW II WASPs to be laid to rest at the military cemetery.

Those lying here will never suffer pain, their souls are free,
The Light will always shine on those welcomed to eternity.

Arlington

Spread out below the home of Custis-Lee
Its rolling hills of hallowed heroes flow
In dark times there’s no better place to be
As sunrise sets the ashen stones aglow
And whether at the flame or at the tomb
Of those of promise shrouded young with death
There echoes in my ears the cannon’s boom
Proclaiming blessed ones who’ve drawn last breath
The famous men and women there now sleep
Victorious, now needing quiet peace
And with their lowly siblings’ spirits weep
All hoping that the days of war will cease

I long to walk those sacred paths again
In Arlington abide the best of men

Funeral At Arlington

Those who went before were there,
assembled in their ordered columns.

I remember white and brilliant stones,
the rolling green of grass,
a clear blue sky no longer seen.

And I remember too this sense:

	A chair was waiting empty
	while a quiet prayer was spoken over dinner.

	In an old garage some tools gathered rust.

	A folded paper waited to be read.

	A face was missing from a night of cards.

The caisson and the bugle and the rifles,
all were brought together for this final call to order.

Then there was the smell of gunpowder and horses,
folded in the sunny wind,
dissolved into a cloudless sky.

Arlington Tombstone

Arlington Tombstone

The dash in the middle, the length of a life
No mention of children, no mention of wife
No mention of war, no mention of peace
Just the day that life started, the day that it ceased
The symbols and words etched there on the stone
Are all that we have maybe all that is known
Medals awarded, a cluster or two
No explanation of what did he do
Was he a hero, did his luck just run out
Did he die all alone or with buddies about



 The name on the tombstone, a man in my life
My sisters his children, my mother his wife

Arlington National Cemetery

ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
by
Robert E. Welch, Sr.
May 18, 2016

The Honor Guard goes slowly by
As another’s laid to rest.
The bugle’s call hangs in the sky
Farewell to America’s best.

Look upon this solemn sight
Beneath the clear blue sky.
Markers of the purest white,
In silent rows they lie.
 
A gentle breeze goes drifting by,
Cause flags to wave anew.
And as the warming sun grows high,
It dries the morning dew. 

The stillness falls upon the ear
With reverence sad and deep.
We walk among them, far and near,
Those in eternal sleep.

The changing of the guard goes on,
In weather foul and fair.
To honor those that are unknown 
And respect those lying there.

Arlington

Row by row for miles it seems
   perfectly aligned, the white stones rise
Stoic symbols of brave men and women
   a sight that brings tears to our eyes

In irony, a bald eagle rests
   atop a single grave marker
He seems to know that each life snuffed
   leaves our world a bit darker

Changing of the guard
   at the tomb of an unknown warrior
Precise, rigid, respectful
   performed with utmost honor

Who's buried there?
   Fathers, husbands, even wives
This tomb represents all lost in action 
   as they gave their lives 

On the far side of Arlington
   an eternal flame is still aglow
For an assassinated president
   JFK - another war hero

You cannot visit the cemetery
   without shedding tears
For the noble and brave young soldiers
   whose sacrifices secured our years

Yes, years, decades, centuries
   of feeling safe on U.S. shores
Came with the hefty price
   countless casualties of wars

As sunset darkens their resting place
    let’s raise our eyes to the sky
Praying our troops return safely
    and, in peace, the eagle will fly 



July 12, 2014   
*Dedicated to all of the men and women who have preserved our freedom.

Reflections On a Flyover For My Dad At Arlington

Above the clouds in many splendored hues of blue and white
    This view beheld by an honored and rarest few

A nations treasure lies below in marble and in green
    Yet no dome or obelisk could ever be this hallowed

Like a great bird it claws across the sky
    A meeting calls: a friend in need

Its mighty engines crash through the silent morning sky
    Its shrieks but music to all who know and remember well

The many come to take her place are fallen
    This Daedalus lives on to tell their tales and more

Through younger eyes she gleamed in sun drenched silvers high above the clouds
    Now bathed in grays she lingers on to battles unimagined in her youth

Lightened of the tools of war her peaceful mission now to do
    She’s come to pay her last respects

And as she dipped and turned away
    A sweet release and something more

A soul was taken from this world
    And carried to the arms of God

© 2014 by Craig McAlister

Flyover by B-52H serial 0060 "Iron Butterfly" at Arlington National Cemetery on January 7, 2008.

Arlington Christmas

With the Christmas season upon us, I wanted to share as many of my Christmas themed poems as I could this month.  Hope you all enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them.

Arlington Christmas

They stand there in ranks
Straight up and tall
Just like the day
When they answered the call
Row upon row
Section by section
They gave us their all
Without an exception
Some names are unknown
Some known are not there
But all get a marker 
To show that we care
You see Army and Navy
Air Force and Marine
Privates to Presidents
And those in between
From Civil War soldiers
To Afghanistan
We honor our fallen
Every woman and man
And every Christmas
We lay on a wreath
To remember the soldier
That lies there beneath
As I gaze o’re the graveyard
Of green wreaths on stone
I know that no family
Will e’re grieve alone
For this country remembers
And honors each year
All those who have fallen
And are resting right here

Mdailey

An Arlington Christmas

Arlington Christmas

They stand there in ranks
Straight up and tall
Just like the day
When they answered the call
Row upon row
Section by section
They gave us their all
Without an exception
Some names are unknown
Some known are not there
But all get a marker 
To show that we care
You see Army and Navy
Air Force and Marine
Privates to Presidents
And those in between
From Civil War soldiers
To Afghanistan
We honor our fallen
Every woman and man
And every Christmas
We lay on a wreath
To remember the soldier
That lies there beneath
As I gaze o're the graveyard
Of green wreaths on stone
I know that no family
Will e're grieve alone
For this country remembers
And honors each year
All those who have fallen
And are resting right here

Mdailey	12/25/11

I wrote this on Christmas day as I sat in my car and looked over the landscape of Arlington Cemetary.

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