Little Ted

A short poem for D Day.

Little Ted

Little Ted likes to bounce his ball
on the beach
Billy remembers he did too
But he was killed just out of reach

Little Ted likes to watch the seagulls
Swooping overhead
But, Billy only remembers them picking
At the dead

Little Ted likes to run into the dunes
To hide and play
Billy still hides from the machine gun’s
Deathly spray

But, little Ted doesn’t like the sand
Between his toes
And, Billy can remember it blocking
His throat and nose

But, little Ted likes making sand castles
With his bucket and spade!
And Billy thinks…
And Billy thinks
It was worth the price that he paid

And Little Ted goes home with
An ice cream in his hand
As, Billy fades, once more
Into time’s eternal sand.

©️ Stephen W Atkinson.