Hill of Infamy
Light show cast surreal glow,
Sea front still, as warm tears flow,
Unchecked; I leave them be,
For on ANZAC Cove I discover me.
Tears anoint the sacred ground,
Self-conscious now I look around,
Through hazy eyes and gloom I see,
That others cry, not just me.
From ANZAC Cove I start to walk,
Possessed of mind, bereft of talk,
Toward a hill of infamy
Of untold pain, of loss, I see.
I pause a moment at Lone Pine,
The Diggers there lie for all time,
Lost wave by wave; it was insane,
For what; some lame-brained plan our bane.
I stand atop the blood soaked fill,
Of Chunuk Bair; that bastard hill,
‘Twas briefly won, but at what cost?
I’ll tell you: a generation of Wellingtons lost.
In one mass grave the hundreds lie,
One August night they came to die,
No dreams to see the world fulfilled,
Just oblivion; and families willed.
This land we came to habitate,
Was not ours to infiltrate,
But order from afar decides,
The fate of all those that died.
First Sea Lord, with blank face,
Resigns in shame and stark disgrace
Then absolved of blame he quickens pace
To another war, and a greater race
For him no pain, no empty shell,
No memories of fiery hell,
Churchillian values? time will tell
Whether all this was actually worth it.
Was not just ANZAC suffered most,
Gone, the cream of Turkish youth,
Land and country, vow to protect,
And that they did, with no regret.
The words of Ataturk ring true,
They comfort me, they should do you,
Boundless compassion, holding firm,
(I would have liked to have known him.)
Turk and ANZAC, hand in hand
Together now, warm in this land
For us no fear, no stark regret
Firm friends now, lest we forget
Light show cast surreal glow
Sea front still, as warm tears flow,
Unchecked; I leave them be
At Gallipoli I discover me.
Gary Parata (New Zealand)
Gallipoli, April 25, 2006