WHITE CROSSES

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 71, Issue 6137, 17 September 1945, Page 2

WHITE CROSSES

I stood perplexed and still. The long rays of the setting sun Beat upon my brow— And I was sad. My heart cried, for I knew not What to say: Nor why I had stopped, Nor why I had prayed, Yet I had stopped, And I had prayed. And my face. And my body, And my soul, Were cold and clammy with feai'And hatred. There they stood. One thousand and twenty Little white crosses Like glittering white angels Standing on slabs of gold. It seemed as though the angels Bade me come nearer I knew not why. And then I saw The small, black inscriptions On the white, scarred wood. I knelt, 1 heard voices Joining together In triumphant Marching Songs. And in the distance the voices Of angels—soft and harmonious. The inscriptions blurred For there were tears in my eyes; My heart beat faster—faster—faster And I wept. Everything was still. The moon shone down upon the graves While the stars sang to the glory Of the men who lay Beneath the sands Of this foreign land. My hands clenched. I heard the drone of man-made weapons— Machines that fly in the air— Bringing death, destruction and sorrow. I was angry. God created this world pure With beauty and with peace. But man destroys. I saw again the white crosses. I knelt and prayed “Make man more Godlike.”