Duckboard Poems | Examples

British Sector

West Berlin, British Sector
Hotbed of rumour and lies
I’m there illegally, not wearing 
A Jimmy in scaleyback disguise.
I was a Secret Squirrel or
Sneaky Beak was another name
They called us both but
They both meant the same.

There to report
As things moved along
Trying to ensure none
Of the info was wrong
That infamous wall had
Not long been built
The Cuban Missile Crisis
Was running at full tilt.
 
They said there was a minefield
Under the duckboard to our site
I never knew whether it was 
Just bull, or whether it  was right.
You paused at the door to allow
The VOPO at the border fence
Get a good clear focus
On his telephoto lens.

If you were a newbie
And it was your first time
Tradition said you stopped
To give him a Churchill sign.
There was panic and despair
That we were pulling out
All from propaganda the Reds
Were spreading all about.

And then suddenly it was over 
One Mr K decided to back down
And it was time for me to leave
That turbulent divided town.
A Twin Pioneer took me out 
Quietly and Illegally by air 
It’s not shown on my record as 
Officially I was never ever there.