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TRAWLING ON A DAY'S LEAVE, 1943

This poem found its home on the Places of Poetry website in June 2019. I loved pinning it at Reculver to give it its own place in the world.

And I received this feedback:
"Day 9 poem of the day. Some excellent poems pinned today (thanks!), including a few moving pieces engaging with military heritage: from an ancient history of warfare evoked by the walls of Colchester, through to World War II. I particularly like this piece, pinned to the coastal village of Reculver, Kent, which juxtaposes the everyday labours of fishermen with the brutal, dehumanizing reality of death at sea."

Oral history links below.





TRAWLING ON A DAY'S LEAVE, 1943 

Too waterlogged to haul over the side
even for the strong arms
of you and your father.

Your roped him to the boat,
tied him on the stern for towing behind.
He couldn't be left to float;
he needed to come out trawling,
the dead man.

You took him with you to catch the tide.
For the living, for the food.

As the boat picked up speed
you couldn't help but watch the almost enthusiastic
movement of his legs as he rode the waves
the three long miles to Reculver.

Back in town, the pineapples you brought from The Azores
were lined up in shop windows for all to see
while you delivered your German airman,
a line of bullets across his back,
to the coastguard station.


Mick Holness Oral History

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