Page 27 - Living Gems Thrive | April 2023

The heartbreak of war revealed in song

A poem set to music describing the bravery and fear of a young soldier at war brought tears to the eyes when
performed at Ruby by Living Gems last Anzac Day.

Written by resident Shelagh Clune and set to music by musician Papa Voss, A Son Goes Off to War reveals the
young man's inner turmoil through letters sent to his mum over the course of his tour of duty.

The stirring performance featured in a local newspaper and uploaded to Papa Voss' YouTube Channel for you to
view here: youtube.com/watch?v=fcA_ojWQOSU

Best Mate Across the Sea
by Terry Hayes by Daniel Toia
(honorary member, age 13)
The Anzac stood at the top of the hill,
Muddy and bloody and cranky as well. I was young when I went to sea,
He’d come through it all with nary a scratch, When I went to fight a war,
So all was O.K. but there’s always a catch. Thinking only of the glory to be,
As I landed on foreign shore.
His best mate Bill was nowhere around,
He’d looked all over but no Bill had he found. But when the guns had been fired,
“The bugger’s gone AWOL” was his first thought, When the fight was all done,
But then he reflected on how Bill had fought. My heart lay still, mired,
With my friends beneath the Turkish sun.
Uphill and down dale he’d crawled, and he’d run,
Hooting and shouting and firing his gun. I watched red flowers blossom,
So, Bill wouldn’t quit, he knew in his head, On my steadfast friends’ shirt,
Then maybe the poor silly buggers got dead. Who now lie still as dead possums,
Underneath the Turkish dirt.
But Bill couldn’t die, it just wasn’t right,
They were planning to get on the booze tonight. I left my heart across the sea,
Maybe he’s gone to the cookhouse for chow, With my friends underneath the ground,
Coz he too was hungry right about now. Nobody is left, no one but me,
Horror, not glory, is all I found.
Then up the hill came a wonderful sight,
Good mate old Bill and he was alright. I was young when I went across the sea,
In one hairy fist, besides his big gun, When I went to fight, to war,
He’d found a great prize, a bottle of rum. But the horrors and loss have aged me,
I’m a young man no more.
“Hey, my old mate” Bill then yelled out,
“Look what I found and it’s my bloody shout!”

livinggems.com.au April 2023 27