MEDALS IN THE DUST
I FOUND THEM LYING IN THE DUST, THEY’D LONG SINCE LOST THEIR GLINT
WHO THEY HAD ONCE BELONGED TO, THERE WAS NOT THE SLIGHTEST HINT
A ROW OF TINY MEDALS, ONCE SO PROUDLY WORN
PRESENTED MANY YEARS AGO, BEFORE I WAS EVER BORN
NO ONE SEEMED TO KNOW, HOW LONG THEY HAD LAIN THERE
AND WHAT SEEMED A GREATER SIN, NO ONE SEEMED TO CARE
EACH ONE A BADGE OF COURAGE, BRAVELY WON IN WAR
NOW LEFT ABANDONED, ON A STORE ROOM FLOOR
NO NAME OR SERIAL NUMBER, INSCRIBED AROUND EACH RIM
HIS SERVICE IN TWO WORLD WARS, WAS MORE THAN JUST A WHIM
A VETERAN OF OUR NATION, IN CAMPAIGNS NEAR AND FAR
AN OAK LEAF FOR BRAVERY, PINNED ABOVE A STAR
AWARDS ARE THERE TO CHERISH, MEMORIES OF ONE SO DEAR
NAMES RECALLED ON ANZAC DAY AND DIFFERENT TIMES EACH YEAR
SO, I TOOK THOSE TINY TRIBUTES AND I’M NOT AFRAID TO SAY
THEY JOINED THE GENERATIONS, OF MY FAMILY’S ON DISPLAY
SINCE THE DAY OF FEDERATION, HISTORY HAS BEEN SHORT
WE SEEM TO FIGHT ABOVE OUR WEIGHT, IN BATTLE AND IN SPORT
SO, PLEASE BEQUETH YOUR MEDALS, TO ONE THAT YOU CAN TRUST
ELSE ONE DAY I MIGHT FIND THEM, JUST LYING IN THE DUST.
By Tomas ‘Paddy’ Hamilton
5 November 2019
NB: The author is aware that miniature medals have no name or serial number inscribed on them.
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