Death of a Soldier

(i.m. of Jean McConville, and unknown soldier)

It was a night before Christmas,
a widowed protestant woman of an ecumenical marriage,
gave water to a soldier.
Her crime,
being an ecumenical follower,
of Christ.
Her punishment,
dragged from her screaming children,
on a night before Christmas,
and murdered,
assassinated,
and buried,
hidden,
by masked hereoes,
freedom fighters.
Her orphans,
foraged for food for five weeks,
on a night before Christmas,
until discovered by the health service,
as fearful neighbours kept mum,
fearing wrath of masked,
darkhidden words.
Three months later,
four weeks after the orphans discovery
of the children of a Christian woman widow,
a night before Christmas,
in a lane,
a nineteen year old soldier,
surrounded by catholic, modern,
liberated women,
followers of our heroes,
worshippers of a local god,
called the gunmen,
a shot a crying boy.
Happy Christmas from out a creature could stir.

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Biography

Bernard Kennedy, has published three poetry collection, Context Reality (1988), Leaves of Autumn (1998), The Poet'sTower & Love poems (1999) and Berlin, Berlin, (published in Easter 2000). He as published in various magazines and ezines. His web page is at www.worldsites.net/poetry.