Today’s Poet’s Corner contribution by Judy Dally is about the memories of war.

War Memorial

I don’t remember
the war
in which my father fought.
He dug up corpses
from London’s rubble
years before
I was born.

My father remembered
the war
for thirty-four more years
before he died
from self-inflicted wounds.

My father fought
against us all
with words
instead of weapons
with silences
instead of sirens
with looks
that could kill…

But when I till
the rubble of the past
I remember my father
but I don’t remember
the war.

Judy Dally has been a board member for the SA Writers’ Centre, and committee member and co-editor for the Friendly Street Poetry Group, a poetry reading group and publisher in Adelaide. Her most recent joint project for Friendly Street, was its Reader No. 36, launched at Writers’ Week 2012. Judy has also seen over 25 consecutive years of personal publication in the annual Friendly Street Reader. Judy has also been a teacher and published two books on the profession.

Readers’ original and unpublished poems of up to 40 lines can be emailed, with postal address, to [email protected]. A poetry book will be awarded to each contributor.