FIREWORK NIGHT
FIREWORK NIGHT – NOVEMBER 1976
It’s Firework Night, the children yell ;
we ,have filled our “Guys” ; our pockets swell;
and Grandpa Long has had his say;
we can stay up late ,to watch the Display .
Halloween was a pure delight;
scary masks + ghostly sights ;
“grown ups” smiled, at our “trick or treat”;
pumpkin pie ,and sweets to eat .
Our Dad sold fireworks in our shop;
bangers,rockets ; we sold the lot !
Catherine Wheels, and Screechers too;
for our friends and neighbour’s true .
The cricket ground ,with stars so bright
were hosts , that cold Firework Night;
baked potatoes and hot beef stew;
warmed our hands from turning blue .
Scaffolding supported the Display in Ranks ;
to simulate war ,with Rockets and Tanks ;
that “fired shells” in blue and red;
coloured lights, in a sky that bled .
But what is this; is Grandpa ill,
he’s tumbled down ,and looks so still;
mumbling words, from an age now gone,
of comrades fallen, at the Somme .
His look of dread, it tells a story;
of forgotten dead,the lads all gory;
the Mills Bombs , mustard gas ; he wails;
machine guns blazing Paschendale .
As rocket and tanks ,start to spray;
the fireworks have turned Grandpa grey;
his limbs a quiver, in the sunset glow,
as children yell, his last breath goes .
His Old Pals Army ,were betrayed;
by champagne generals, on parade ;
the brave lads slain on Flanders Field !
Our kids eat pies , and do cart-wheels .
Grand Dad,was buried on a day remembered;
for Queen and Country; a nation dismembered ;
as Bugle played, the Last Post ceased !
No more War; we march for Peace .
But please don’t call us cowards, fools ;
our kin are dead; we learn’t your rules .
Keep a “stiff upper lip” ;our leader’s chimed ;
and that is why, all wars are crime !
Remember , remember the 5th of November ;
when children laughed, but grandpa trembled;
don’t be deceived by the Fireworks displayed ;
or more “Guys” ,will die, for a War replayed !
By John Harrison
Peace Campaigner
About this poem
A Poem about War ,relevant to today's new generation, but also linking it to Firework Night . E Mail me -John Harrison on :- smile4u2024@yahoo.co.uk for more poems ,or my Anthology ?
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Written on October 10, 2020
Submitted by smile4u2024 on November 14, 2022
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:01 min read
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Quick analysis:
Scheme | A BBCC DXEE XXFF DDFF GGHH IIXJ KKXB CCXX LLXX MMXX NNXJ AXLL X |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 2,039 |
Words | 405 |
Stanzas | 14 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 1 |
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"FIREWORK NIGHT" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/145691/firework-night>.
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