The Trophy (An original sonnet)

Image David Blackwell, flickr.

This poem, about war, is based on true events that occurred whilst my father was doing his national service.

The Trophy

Passport size, black and white, mesmerising.
“Is this picture fake like stuff on TV?”
Right over my head his sad smile passing.
He nodded and said, “put it back for me.”

“Dad this photo is actually real,
I can’t believe I ever thought it fake.
Who took it? Please tell me what was the deal?
A man with brains blown out, for goodness sake!”

“Teen men posted to an abandoned camp,
At our approach some North Koreans fled.
I never knew which of us left his stamp,
But I aimed my gun far above his head.”

He lost his father in a war, unwell,
He never wanted freedom from his hell.