Best Belgian Poems
Courage of Youth, Battle of Ypres, Flanders Field
(A Tribute)
Tough as nails young man with a red right hand
red-fire and whiskey ran in his blood.
Courageous seed of vast and cold hard land
quick temper, power of a surging flood.
Seeker of life, its promised mysteries
rash gambler with all he would ever own.
Born on ship in high wind swept, roaring seas
toughest warrior his town had ever grown.
Met his fate by volley of red-hot lead
buried on ground scared and battle blasted.
Aye boys, fodder that machine guns were fed
fools marching to death, long as it lasted.
Now flowers cover up and Time denies
scenes of battle torn soil and blood-red skies.
R.J. Lindley
April 23rd, 1975
SONNET-(DEATH AND WAR'S FUTILITY)
Tribute to Courage of Youth-- Second Battle of Ypres, April 22nd 1915 .
Note- added - 8-26-2017
Wiki-
The name Flanders Fields is particularly associated with battles that took place in the Ypres Salient, including the Second Battle of Ypres and the Battle of Passchendaele. For most of the war, the front line ran continuously from south of Zeebrugge on the Belgian coast, across Flanders Fields into the centre of Northern France before moving eastwards — and it was known as the Western Front.
The phrase originates from a poem titled In Flanders Fields by Canadian Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, inspired by his service during the Second Battle of Ypres. The fields were not maintained for years before they were made into a memorial. Today Flanders Fields is home to thousands of poppies.
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Found this while rummaging through some of my old poems. Decided not to edit it. Leave it as it was composed over 42 years ago..
Added the note for those not familiar with that battle and its horrific carnage, primarily from the insanity of large bodies of troops marching into direct machine gun fire.
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Note:
This poem was selected and requested for teaching purposes at Cambridge University. Permission was granted for educational use.... RJL
I Love Horses: A--Z
A is for... Appaloosa. They have
blankets on their rumps.
B is for...Belgian. They work
hard and can pull up stumps.
C is for...Clydesdale. They're
BIG bays with white fluffy feet.
D is for...Dartmoore, a pony
from the moors--so sweet!
E is for...Egyptian, the finest
horse on desert sand.
F is for...Fresian: Big black War
Horse--a Knight's demand.
G is for...Gypsy Vanner, a rare
beauty like fairy tales.
H is for...Hanoverian. The best
all-round from England hails.
I is for...Irish Tinker. A loyal
horse that's black and white.
J is for...Java Pony. He's
Indonesia's working sprite.
K is for...Knapstrup. He's a
horse full of leopard spots!
L is for...Lipizzaner: Grey
leapers known in the Big Tops!
M is for...Mustang. Wild and
Free--roams America's West.
N is for...Nonius: Big-headed
black and drives the best.
O is for...Oldenburg. Dressage
ribbons just get bigger.
P is for...Palomino. Roy Rogers
named his, Trigger.
Q is for...Quarter Horse,
cowboy's fav'rite! Does
Everything!
R is for...Racking Horse. His
ride's so smooth it will make
you sing.
S is for...Spotted Saddle Horse,
Gaited beauty everyone loves.
T is for...Thoroughbred. Racing,
"The Sport of Kings", he does.
U is for...Ukrainian Riding
Horse: Beautiful born after
War's end.
V is for...Vlaamperd: Flemish
black stallion and true friend.
W is for...White (Albino) Horse.
The Lone Ranger's 'Silver'--of
course!
X is for...Xilingol. He's
Mongolia's riding draft horse.
Y is for...Yonagui, a chestnut
pony from Japan.
Z is for...Zebra: African wild
but tamed by man.
A personal therapist long past
the end,
The love of a horse...is the
love... of a Friend.
deborah burch
02.28.2013
At
Dunkirk,
where thousands
of stranded men
lined a bloody beach,
hope was draining with each
air strike delivered by the
unrelenting Germans’ aircraft.
Cold, starved, and injured men watched from shore -
their few rescue ships being bombed and sunk.
How must they have felt knowing their homeland
was so close – and yet so far away?
Horrific days passed when at last
brave civilians came with boats,
so it was that ten times
the number of those
not expected
to live were
instead -
SAVED.
Aug. 16, 2017: Double Etheree written for
JPContest 6: WAR AND HEROISM Contest
From Wikipedia:
The Dunkirk evacuation, code-named Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, was the evacuation of Allied soldiers during World War II from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the north of France, between 26 May and 4 June 1940.
The operation commenced after large numbers of British, French, and Belgian troops were cut off and surrounded by German troops during the Battle of France. In a speech to the House of Commons, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called this "a colossal military disaster", saying "the whole root and core and brain of the British Army" had been stranded at Dunkirk and seemed about to perish or be captured.
On the first day only 7,669 men were evacuated, but by the end of the eighth day, 338,226 soldiers had been rescued by a hastily assembled fleet of over 800 boats. Many troops were able to embark from the harbour's protective mole onto 39 destroyers of the British Royal Navy, 4 Royal Canadian Navy destroyers,] and civilian merchant ships, while others had to wade out from the beaches, waiting for hours in shoulder-deep water. Some were ferried to the larger ships by what came to be known as the little ships of Dunkirk, a flotilla of hundreds of merchant marine boats, fishing boats, pleasure craft, yachts, and lifeboats called into service from Britain. In his We shall fight on the beaches speech on 4 June, Churchill hailed their rescue as a "miracle of deliverance".
Let the paper be a canvas and the pen, a brush
The words fill the mind like a young girl’s blush
Every color on the palette of the imagination
Becomes a vibrant idea of luscious creation
Open a door of stained glass with swans of white
Made more brilliant by the glowing sunlight
Surrounded by a pool of sapphire blue
Water lilies afloat with teardrops of dew
Beyond the door a walled brick terrace of burgundy red
With a gray flagstone floor in which to tread
Terra cotta pots at the edges with mixed colored flowers
Above a dogwood in blooms like a canopy towers
Wide steps lead to a large flowing fountain
Three flowing tiers sparkle like a crystalline mountain
It towers within a large oval pool
A goldfish swimming like a small orange jewel
Beyond the fountain, a cobblestone path
Followed by a fence of latticework lath
An open field on the other side of the fence
Beyond the field is a forest, dark and dense
Two Belgian horses graze on clover patches of red
Near a large gray stone two-story shed
Nearby a pond of sparkling blue
Reflecting the clouds of a dusky pink hue
The blue sky fades into pink streaks of sunset
Turning the forest trees to a darker silhouette
And the grass to bright emerald green
All to create a tranquil pastoral scene
The words fill the mind like young girl’s blush
With the paper as a canvas and the pen, a brush.
I'll take you on a journey
There's places we can see
I picked a few I think you'll like
I hope that you'll agree
Let's watch a blazing sunset
From somewhere on a shore
Just you and I together
I couldn't ask for more
Let's eat Godiva chocolate
From a Belgian chocolatier
I mean flying there to Brussels
Not going somewhere here
Let's sip some French press coffee
At a Paris street café
Where afternoons just mosey on
And an hour lasts a day
Let's swim on the Amalfi coast
That part of Italy
Supposedly is beautiful
Take it in with me
Let's spend some time in Switzerland
I'll rent a small chalet
With a picture window looking out
On Alps not far away
Let's tour United Kingdom
Welsh castles everywhere
We'll walk the English countryside
And breathe the Scottish air
We'll get our steps in easily
Walking hand in hand
I'll get to be alone with you
Wouldn't that be grand?
Pack a bag, we'll be away
It might be for awhile
I'll take care of everything
Just let me see your smile
Chocolate Indulgences (20150129)
If I really had no choice but to divulge,
In mountains of chocolate I would indulge.
I'm not just taking about Snickers,
Reese's peanut butter cups, Butterfingers,
Or other grocery store sweeties.
I'm talking about the expensive stuff, most from oversea:
Fruit and nut bars from British Cadbury,
Milk molasses chips from local Mrs. See's,
Fudge Easter Eggs from domestic Helen Grace,
Belgian praline Sea Shells from Leonidas,
Belgian Cote D'Or bouche pralines,
And from Germany's Ritter Sport--EVERYTHING!
Wallowing in glorious chocolate, I'd be so pathetic,
If not for the fact, that I'm a diabetic.
It is easy to forget that in the main we die only seven times more slowly than our dogs.
Jim Harrison (1937 - 2016) - The Road Home
First Bobo, a cocker spaniel,
I remember only from pictures.
He ran way before we moved
to Canada when I was four.
Second Kizzie, a cockapoo, Mom got
when the family moved to Texas.
I only saw her on holidays and such
as I stayed in Canada. She lived
long and was with the folks when they
retired to British Columbia and was
into her teens before they put her down.
Third Sadie, 3/4 Newfie - 1/4 Bernese,
a big black dog, with a big appetite
for apples from a special tree and
the socks our daughter, a toddler
cast off around the house.
I still chuckle remembering
the scattered remnants lining
the farm lane that spring.
She was over ten, and in pain
when we put her down.
Her ashes remain in an urn in the garage.
Fourth Rizzo, a fencejump cross of
Gordon Setter and Belgian Shepherd,
my wife and daughter got him from
a friend, while I was off on a canoe trip.
A headstrong dog who would take off after
a scent or car to return when he pleased.
On leash, he'd almost pull you off your feet.
With age, he grew territorial and
after the third biting incident, I took
him to the vet to be put down.
But she gave him to an older lady
with a fenced yard who put thirty
pounds on him and he lived to
fourteen or fifteen.
Fifth Hailey, who was five when
we got her from the shelter.
A Border Collie - Shepherd cross
and definitely our daughter's dog.
She'd bounce foxlike through the fields
and on evening beach walks, loved
to fetch sticks we'd toss into the waves.
She was over fifteen and failing when
we put her down, days before
our daughter's wedding.
No urn this time.
Sixth Xena, a Shepherd-Collie cross
and beyond doubt a princess
but more sweetheart than warrior.
She has the canine equivalent
of ADD and a bark first policy
when something new appears
and will retrieve sticks or balls
until your arm falls off .
At over eight, she's running strong.
Seventh, Sam, a mostly Shepherd mix,
she's our most 'rescue' rescue dog,
smart, loyal and obedient
a wantobe lap dog with a feral streak.
She responds in kind to aggressive
dogs and we muzzle her on walks.
Now five she'll be with us for a
good while to continue the tally.
No one is hated more
than he who speaks the truth
- Pluto
as Belgian officers
cut off legs and hands
Of innocent Congolese
from 1885, king Leopold II smiled,
the victims of atrocities cried,
many Belgians applauded
to encourage murderers.
The world was so silent
seeing the murders
Of Millions of Congolese.
The International Criminal Court still silent
As if the animals were killed...
Not millions of human beings.
The truth must continue to be told
for repairs in D.R.Congo.
When I think of certain kings and patriotic leaders
Who were killed like animals
because they did not want to bow to the invaders.
My great great grandfather king Mussabwa Kamango
was also killed in Uvila during the colonial regime.
If the ICC was a fair international criminal court
I wished to speak publicly about the problem
of the assassination of the king of Bavila
by the Belgian government.
Yeah ! speechless
because there is no where to start.
Difficult to trust the court which
was created to protect
certain nations.
many people are afraid to tell the truth
thinking to be killed by some folks
who hate to hear the truth
about their atrocities.
I think of the family of the late
king Mussabwa Kamango
to be heard internationally.
After losing the head of their family
and nation
many things have gone wrong
due to perturbation of
Leopold II and other
westerners in the
colonial regime.
Born an American on eighth month
Stanley Allen Meyer, a man worth,
Designed technology of water fuel cell
Machines which as the perpetual motion.
Thing that retrofitted in automobile
Water as fuel instead of gasoline,
Cell which splits water's element
Hydrogen and oxygen purportedly.
Mixture of gases with specified ratios
Result of reaction came Hydrogen gas
Burnt to seperate water molecules,
Violating the laws of Thermodynamics.
Thus, his perpetual motion works,
The term known, Electrolytic cells.
Electricity, a chemical redox reaction
Which got patent in Nineteen-ninety.
Use of "Water fuel cell assembly"
Portrays fuel cell wall capacitor
Single unit producing fuel gas,
That's the method of his invention.
Ohio TV station turned the destiny
His invention termed as fraudulent
Two investors brought out dealerships
Came as witness for "lame excuse".
Claimed of using Electrolysis
Committed fraud, "gross and egregious"
Dollor of twent-five thousand,
Repay them quick, court ordered.
With Belgian investors at restaurant
"They poisonef me" He shouted.
Ran out, gained his death
It's over of a cerebral aneurysm.
An hour of death came to both
Meyer with his invention's death,
No other restriction, no royalty,
His work incorporated long ago.
The car that ran on water
Sank on it's master death
A legend's history people unaware,
Invention which had Meyer's depth.
From many connoisseurs, it has drawn mighty cheers.
This has earned the title of “The King of Beers”.
Drinkers have enjoyed its tasted for many years.
In numerous places, this beer is number one.
The flavorful brew has been rated second to none.
Where quality is concerned, it has established the benchmark.
A team of Clydesdale horses remains its trademark.
The company’s history is long and glorious.
The corporate headquarters is located in St. Louis.
Even during the brief period of prohibition,
the firm had never relinquished its top position.
Its status as an American beer is now in doubt.
To a Belgian company, they sold themselves out.
the day we met~
the sky was in bloom
with soft serenading stars
enticing beguiling Belgian blues
of varied hypnotic hues
as you held me close
to your arms~
I heard the cypress
singing sweet symphony
as the moon faded
into swirling sapphire clouds
the symphony lingered on~
soared on sleeping sky
as the specks of stardust
shine upon our skin
bathing in melodic moonlight
under the starry night
In an attempt to establish an uncertain linkage between 2 parables,
Ivo Torena resorted to impress his colleagues all night long; hence,
awkward as a cow on a crutch, he was cowed into pilfering bananas,
and when he was caught red-handed by the deputy, his eyes showed
no response even though his arteries were friendly. Thus, a series of
tribulations took place inside his troubled mind for outlandish
reasons, and his whereabouts were commended by one of the top
enemies of the state: The twerp from Antwerp. On a serious note,
a cabal of notorious hotshots devised an agenda to unnerve Ivo
until the cow comes home. Still and all, Torena has a truly unique
composure, unlike the belligerent Belgian, and his mannerisms
can't be reciprocated with ease. Furthermore, the notoriety with
which he prattled and sprattled was momentous! His uneventful
birth can't hold a candle to any cinematographic invention although
his water bottle company is a candle in the wind and the pieces
begin to assemble duly without second thoughts whatsoever.
“Anything can be achieved if you set your mind to it.”
Kim was born with the rare disease Poland’s syndrome,
Which means that he has abnormal or missing muscles,
On the left side of his chest wall, but surgery did tone.
A student of Medicine and Surgery at Leeds University,
He was a proud junior, the Under-13 level World No. 2,
In the sport of table tennis, ‘cos it's speed and closeness,
Instantly excited him when he tried it at nine, it had hue.
He made his international debut in 2008 at age sixteen,
And won lots of gold medals, came fourth at the Euros,
In 2011, which took him onto the London Paralympics,
Which are set in him as his epic, life-changing clothes.
So at the Slovenia Open in 2013, Kim won the bronze,
And then at the European Championships in the singles,
He made the quarter finals, but then at the Belgian Open,
He took the gold in the class 10 of the singles with ingles.
2014 saw him win a silver at the Slovenian Open again,
And then when he travelled to the Cote d’Azur to compete,
In their International, Kim consolidated his choice talent,
By stylishly taking the gold in the singles, a victory sweet.
Kim took a year off his studies in 2015 to prepare for Rio,
And in 2016 at Italy’s Lignano Master Open, determiner,
He secured a bronze in the singles, so Rio was certain,
There he reached the singles, team quarters: a winner.
My Father Took me to the Menin Gate
lest I should not know that lives were lost
to make me free.
Then at the cemetery I fell asleep
while he walked along the rows on soft grass between the crosses
Then I heard the tanks roll around
a heavy grinding hell raising sound
that crunched the gravel.
Before the echo died came boots of soldiers.
I seemed to see them travel
along the road ahead all brown
and swinging trouser legs
Above the sound of boots
and breathless gasps of marching men
were wheels and wheels
and rumbling trucks
the swish of lighted flares
gunshot glow and bombard shoots
I could not wake myself, I had to hear
those boots upon the gravel
Then as I woke myself it seemed like blood red rain
was falling down. But through the mist
those white crosses rose, arms out, began to fly
above the cemetery up into the blue sky.
Like flocks of swans they rose
with strange gladsome sound
and disappeared into the blue-grey sky
time passing as so many joined
the upwards wave of spirits
above my exhausted self.
Soldiers of the Commonwealth lie here
black and brown and grey and white
in peace, I hope, not hearing what I heard,
the rosary of sorrow, Passchendales site
that kept off foreign troops from Belgian Soil
until another night.
Rwanda
And man will fight with murder and destruction
When peace and negotiation can go no further
Heaven shed many tears; to see that man
Does not even try to find peace if he can
For man has turned against each other
Heaven is full of sadness; and brother against brother
Humanity await his greatest fall
While heaven pray for us all
In the midst of this madness and pain
Everyone should remember Abel and Cain
Save six thousand;one man, General De Lare
Risk his life, has love to share
As Belgium rules Rwanda, the child
The sibling rebels, revolts and runs wild
The Rwandan president is dead; his plane is shot
All hell breaks loose and the temperature gets hot
The Hutus,supporters of the foreign government
Decide to bring genocide on the peaceful Tutsis without armament
Men women and children,are mowed down with machete and guns
And so instead of helping, the Belgian army runs
France, Italy, Belgium and the Vatican see the massacre of a peaceful people
The catholic church loses its steeple
They turn their backs, turn up their noses
The people die and their families are forced to smell the roses
To take their ex patriots, the French, Italian and Belgian appear
And after they leave, hardly a Tutsi is found standing there
The United Nations Pull out, no diplomacy, no oil, no solution
Things turn seriously grave, the Tutsis are swallowed up in this revolution
When eight hundred thousand Africans dead
All across the world, not a tear is shed
In every nation, love leaves, and enters hate
Atlantis revisit, as man does not see his terrible fate
.William Morrissey 1/28/07