Christmas by JosephineAu
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Description
Christmas in the Trenches (John McDermott)
Oh my name is Francis Tolliver, I come from Liverpool
Two years ago the war was waiting for me after school
From Belgium and to Flanders, Germany to here
I fought for King and country I love dear.
Twas Christmas in the trenches and the frost so bitter hung
The frozen fields of France where still no Christmas songs were sung
Our families back in England were toasting us that day
There brave and glorious lads so far away.
I was lying with my mess mates on the cold and rocky ground
When across the lines of battle came a most peculiar sound
Says I now listen up me boys, each soldier strained to hear
As one young German voice sang out so clear.
He's singing bloody well you know, my partner says to me
Soon one by one each German voice joined in in harmony
The cannons rested silent and the gas cloud rolled no more
As Christmas brought us respite from the war.
As soon as they were finished and a reverent pause was spent
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen struck up some lads from Kent
The next thing sang was Stille Nach tis Silent Night says I
And in two tongues one song filled up that sky
There's someone coming towards us now the front line sentry said
All sights were fixed on one lone figure trudging from their side
His truce flag like a Christmas Star shone on the plane so bright
As he bravely trudged unarmed into the night.
Then one by one on either side, walked in to No Mans Land
With neither gun nor bayonet, we met there hand to hand
We shared some secret brandy and we wished each other well
And in a flare lit football game we gave them hell.
We traded chocolates, cigarettes and photographs from home
These sons and father far away from families of their own
Tom Sanders played the squeeze box and they had a violin
This curious and unlikely band of men.
Soon daylight stole upon us and France was France once more
With sad farewells we each began to settle back to war
But the question haunted every heart that lived that wonderous night
Whose family have I fixed within my sights.
Twas Christmas in the trenches and the frost so bitter hung
The frozen fields of France were warmed, the songs of peace were sung
For the walls they'd kept between us to exact the work of war
had been crumbled and were gone forever more.
Oh my name is Francis Tolliver, from Liverpool I dwell
Each Christmas comes since World War I have learned its lesson well
For the one who calls the shots won't be among the dead and lame
And on each end of the rifle we're the same
Comments (21)
Tamela.J.
Excellent posing & the lighting is TOPS Josephine!!
B_PEACOCK
VEry cool image here .Awesome work
Skipychic
Nice work.. Lighting and pose are great :)
tanhan
good contast!!!excellent composition!!!
tony_br22
I love it .. masterful vision here! the light and setup are very good indeed
KymJ
Wonderful image Josephine and excellent use of the lighting. Well done !!!
iamkate101
That has to be one of the most awesome poems written and you illustrated it so wonderfully! excellent job!!
Victoria_Lee
Abslolutely excellent, Jo ... thanks for posting!
starlight64
Fantastic Josephine! And appropriate for many of us are thinking of loved ones in simular situations this time of year!
Wylder
Wonderful message, and a great image! hugs Isha
ShadowDaleCreations
Stunning. Thank you for sharing. ~Shadow Duchess
cedarwolf
Well, as a veteran, and the managing director of the war archive project at my university, I like it and think it well done.
PoserHobbit
Very well done!!!
drsofaking
Excellent image and story Jo... Great sentiment for this time of year... for any time of year! Thanks
rocker333
Fantastic render. Lighting, expressions, sentiment all great. :-)
blehman
I set here looking at this empty white space trying to think of mere words that will express how this makes me feel. I can not think of any that are good enough. I wish there was a higher ranking than Excellent. It deserves one. Everything about this struck a cord. The mood and expressions between the two are great. The mere confidence of stricking a match on a dark night say it all and the use of that light to illuminate the scene is fantastic. You could not have done a better job to illustrate this moment in time even if you had been there.
Mondwin
splendid words, and fantastic image!!!EXC. bravo!vote!:DDD
lluque
Excellent image Jo,so expressive and with a big charge of feelings. Congrats!! VOTE.
ShadowWind
An excellent portrayal of the sadness that the troops can't be home with their families instead of in the midst and horrors of war. Well done.
Claywoman
This is really awesome! Thanks for sharing!! Just awesome!
cadmar
This is fantastic!! Love the words! Excellent composition!! Lighting, pose & expression top notch!! I love the way you did the sky!! Best to you & yours during the holiday season & beyond!! Rick :-)