HONOR OUR SOLDIERS
MEMORIAL DAY 2015
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Soldier, Maiden, and Flower
by Eugene Field
"Sweetheart, take this," a soldier said,
"And bid me brave good-by;
It may befall we ne'er shall wed,
But love can never die.
Be steadfast in thy troth to me,
And then, whate'er my lot,
'My soul to God, my heart to thee,'--
Sweetheart, forget me not!"
The maiden took the tiny flower
And nursed it with her tears:
Lo! he who left her in that hour
Came not in after years.
Unto a hero's death he rode
'Mid shower of fire and shot;
But in the maiden's heart abode
The flower, forget-me-not.
And when he came not with the rest
From out the years of blood,
Closely unto her widowed breast
She pressed a faded bud;
Oh, there is love and there is pain,
And there is peace, God wot,--
And these dear three do live again
In sweet forget-me-not.
'T is to an unmarked grave to-day
That I should love to go,--
Whether he wore the blue or gray,
What need that we should know?
"He loved a woman," let us say,
And on that sacred spot,
To woman's love, that lives for aye,
We'll strew forget-me-not.
1887.
"And bid me brave good-by;
It may befall we ne'er shall wed,
But love can never die.
Be steadfast in thy troth to me,
And then, whate'er my lot,
'My soul to God, my heart to thee,'--
Sweetheart, forget me not!"
The maiden took the tiny flower
And nursed it with her tears:
Lo! he who left her in that hour
Came not in after years.
Unto a hero's death he rode
'Mid shower of fire and shot;
But in the maiden's heart abode
The flower, forget-me-not.
And when he came not with the rest
From out the years of blood,
Closely unto her widowed breast
She pressed a faded bud;
Oh, there is love and there is pain,
And there is peace, God wot,--
And these dear three do live again
In sweet forget-me-not.
'T is to an unmarked grave to-day
That I should love to go,--
Whether he wore the blue or gray,
What need that we should know?
"He loved a woman," let us say,
And on that sacred spot,
To woman's love, that lives for aye,
We'll strew forget-me-not.
1887.
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10 comments:
Loved that poem Yolanda. It is so appropriate for all the wars wherever and whenever they occurred. Happy Memorial Day
Verse sure sums it up indeed, can't forget
That is a really sad poem.
That poem was really good. Sad but good. Thanks for sharing!
Happy Memorial Day!
Aww, that was beautiful. It made me well up. Thanks for dropping by my blog, signing up for the hop, and especially for sharing this touching poem. Happy Memorial Day to you and yours. :)
Great poem, Yolanda. We celebrate Anzac Day in Oz in April on the anniversary of the ill-gamed landing at Gallipoli and Remembrance Day in November to mark the end of WW2. Ah war, what is it good for?
Hope you're working hard.
Denise :-)
Hi Yolanda,
A most touching poem. I hope you had a peaceful Memorial Day. We shall never forget those who died for our freedom, worldwide.
Gary
What a poignant poem, sadly just as relevant today.
It didn't matter the war - they all took the lives of someone loved.
What a beautiful poem. And sad. Especially on Memorial Day, I remember how very lucky I am that my husband... although a deeply changed version of him... returned from Vietnam.
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