At Eston Cemetery, Plot M205

This poem is dedicated to the memory of Private Patrick O’Callaghan (40296) of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. He now lies, almost forgotten, in an unmarked grave near Middlesbrough. Patrick was brought home from France in November 1917, alive but a broken man. We visited his grave in 2024, he has no memorial but this poem.

Stand easy, brother; my war is over.
Our kin know of my soldier's forfeit,
They’ve stood their solemn vigil by my side,
Now, we may sleep beneath the vaulted skies.

No Portland stone bears witness to my fate
Amid the torn and tortured fields of France;
A shattered soul, they brought me home to rest,
For our futile war had crushed my mind.

My bitter war was fought alone, unseen
By others until I screamed in haunted fear,
And would suffer the thoughtless jests of fools,
As shell-shocked nerves conjured with my limbs.

In time, this earth became my peaceful bed,
And the freshly mown grass became my shroud,
Oft draped in dew and red and golden leaves,
So long I’ve lain unmourned beneath these boughs.

And while I have no storied marker here,
Amid the ranks of people, young and old,
I am at peace beneath the boundless sky,
As once we brothers were - before going up the line.

Photo: The author




















Location: Middlesbrough, UK

Comments

Inquisitive Eastender said…
So sad - and even sadder that this was true for so many people
21 June 2024 at 11:06
Essjaybee said…
I am saddened he has an unmarked grave. I am heartened that you took the time to research his backstory and locate his final rating place. I am humbled by your tribute to this overlooked and forgotten soldier who helped save his country but, by doing so, lost his life as he should have known it.
21 June 2024 at 14:24
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