TLC Forum

BRIEF SPRING
To the Dead of Beruna

Beruna's fields are bright with blooms
That nod and tremble in the breeze
And round about the open mead
The birds bedeck the verdant trees

We used to pray for blooms and birds
And spent our blood to bring them nigh
To green the trees and free the land
And here beneath the grass we lie

Keep high the flag and sing the songs
And ne'er forget the price we paid
Or we, though dead, will not find peace
Though still beneath the sod we're laid

Our spring was brief

Wow, this is beautiful!!

This reminds me of “Flanders Fields”. Beautiful and deep. Well done, Star!

I wrote it precisely because Narnia did not have a Flanders Fields of its own. BTW, FF was in Iambic Pentameter, and I deliberately chose Iambic Tetrameter to avoid direct comparison.

My favorite wartime poem is actually "I Have a Rendezvous With Death" by Alan Seeger, my second, "An Ode of Remembrance" by Lawrence Binyon, my third, "The Soldier" by Rupert Brooke. Flanders Fields weighs in at a distant fourth.

All in all, everyone treats the Battle of Beruna Ford as a resounding victory. There was another side for the families of the fallen, and I wanted to capture that too. In fact, I did a short fanfic story about a fox who was frozen into a statue by Jadis and carried to her castle garden. As he was one of her earliest victims, when he came home triumphant from the Battle at Beruna Ford, he found his elderly wife who had grown old waiting for him. She died of shock when she realized it was him as young and spry as he had been years ago. And he found to his horror that all his friends except an old hare serving as vicar had died. When the fox was found sitting thoroughly sozzled on a bar stool at the local inn, the old hare took him home, got him sober, and convinced him not to throw away the gift of life. And he became an adviser to Queen Lucy whom, word has it, knew a lot about tragedy and sacrifice.

Definitely good to bring up the loss. We do it with our war books, so why not with Narnia?

Magnificent, EveningStar! I do truly think it is interesting to think about and write about those who were turned to Stone and those who lived for ages during and before the winter. They have the whole impact of love and loss, and ancient history, but I would think perhaps a dedication to keep Narnia from returning to the same chaotic state.

I like this poem, EveningStar. It adds realism to the story.

Well done, EveningStar! ... with the stark contrast between the lyrical verses in tetrameter vs. the last line, chopped off after only two iambic beats.

Woah. I got chills. I felt the Flanders Field connection part way through. I found the concept very impactful, and the writing excellent.