WWII: An Ode to the Cogs

By a102866

Tue, 27 May 2014
  • 916 reads
5 comments
 

An ode to the utility crews
men who fought behind the lines
not with rifle or munition
but with shovel and spade
to pave the boulevards of war
to the women that served in solitude
not in tented camps or isolated bivouacs
but in the clerical field offices in the rear
to filter the technical aspects of war

The construction detail's sullied hands
bore no gunpowder burns
nor shoulders the recoiling pains
only the blisters of corrosive strain
repetitive friction of handles rubbing hands

Secretaries' hands with milk-white tread
Few privations, few bombs to skirt
No percussive marks, just Carpal Tunnel aches
from typing, filing memos and reports

Carrying their country's mantra with pride, devotion
Dedicated to the monotony of thankless tasks
Supporting the fighting men without acclaim
Sharing in the spoils of victory just the same

Certificate U
Poem
Other Non-fiction

Comments

Submitted by Bee on

The message in this is carried and enhanced by the way you skip in and out of rhythm and rhyme. 

Strong writing that packs a punch.

Enjoyed.

Bee

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

Many such faithful, hard-working cogs in many walks of life, doing essential and tiring tasks well and unnoticed. (actually mothers and wives are often doing valuable support work!) Rhiannon
 

 

Submitted by a102866 on

Great feedback, Rhiannonow and Bee. I agree that the fabric is held together by the unnoticed seams. The backbone of any society is the mothers that rear its children.

Submitted by Hydra on

The way you switch the iambic on and off is cleverly done. It gives the poem a modern feel without disturbing the flow and manages to somehow link the present with the past.
My only pick are the inversions.'the boulevards of war to pave' for example doesn't seem to have any rythmic advantage over 'to pave the boulevards of war'. Although perhaps, in a way, it helps to link the present with the past.
A damned fine poem though.

Submitted by a102866 on

You are right on the inversion. It is long out of vogue. I have been trying to break the habit. I will change a couple of those lines. Thanks for your kind as well as instructive comments.