HEROES IN PEACE AND WAR DIETMAR MAY, 2018
Tell me who the hero is
Tell me where the heroes are
In ancient times Olympic victor athletes
Muscled wrestlers, naked runners
Were crowned with olive wreaths
Honoured by sculptors, chiselled in white marble
Their feats praised by poets for future generations
In the middle ages war waging warriors
Fought fiercely on Hasting’s battle field
Harold slain, William crowned king
Joan of Arc, her pure white banner
In light armour, white and shining,
Sword in her hand, at seventeen
Spearheading French soldiers
Into Orleans, the besieged town
Worshipped then as the Maid of Orleans
And Charles crowned in the cathedral
Joan of Arc burnt at the stake
Revered the first of May
The National Front heroine now
Who are today those heroes?
Those men killed in action whose names
On war memorials and church walls
Engraved worldwide. Shed their blood
For generals and fatherland
Too young to kill, too young to die
Shattered bones, limbs blown to pieces
Identified by dog tags only
Tube stations and streets
Are named after the generals