Yes David to your last two lines. That is what today's VE commemoration is about. And it is worth remembering that although we are proud of British and Commonwealth troops, we would probably be speaking German now if it wasn't for the Americans. It is easy to forget that in the current climate.

Comment is about Spectator (blog)

Original item by David RL Moore

Hi Uilleam- I know a little Irish Gaelic. Being an Irishman. “Go n-éirí leat” ☘️

Comment is about Blue (blog)

Original item by Tom Doolan

Spot on, Rolph. If anyone thinks "it couldn't happen here";
they had Nazi rallies in '39 at Madison Square gardens, and they've had them here in the UK.

Comment is about Eight Decades On (blog)

Original item by Rolph David

I've been blue many a time Tom. I don't know if you're familiar with the Irish Gaelic; I've been gradually getting my head around the grammar and spelling, and I can tell you, wrestling with that lot has given me something to think about!😊

Comment is about Blue (blog)

Original item by Tom Doolan

Thanks for your comment Rolph. No, I don't speak German. What a sad reflection on the state of the world, that the phrase "Arbeit macht frei" is probably one of the most well-known German expressions amongst our generation.

I thought the Haiku up this morning, bearing in mind that it should traditionally have a seasonal / nature reference - I think I've got the syllable count correct?
Yes, that song is what I had in mind.

Fascism doesn't start out stamping down our streets; it dines with the Élite at the Carlton club, wears sharp suits, speaks in avuncular tones promising our disposessed youth to end all the ills visited on them by, yes, you've guessed it, “THE ÉLITE” who are allowing immigrunts, and asylum seekers to "invade our country" etc.

I've been reading an old newspaper article "Hurrah for the Blackshirts", which bears a chilling resemblance to to the rhetoric currently being used in the UK, Europe and the USA.
As they say around here: "We've learnt nowt".

Comment is about Haiku don Bhliain 2025 [Uimhir a cúig déag 15 on Victory (over what?) Day] (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Uilleam, du sprichst Deutsch?
Vor drei Wochen war ich erneut im KZ Buchenwald und dein Spruch, "Arbeit macht frei" stand an dem Tor wie an vielen KZ. Was da seit langem in Gaza passiert, ist etwas, was die Nazis in Deutschland vorgegeben haben. Und die Welt? Sie hat bis heute nichts daraus gelernt. Das Morden wurde verlagert, in ein anderes Land und jene, die einst Opfer waren, sind heute die Täter. Diese Menschheit...einfach nur ein Haufen unbelehrbarer Irrer.

Wie meinst du die Zeile: Frühling für Starmer? It chillingly echoes the satirical song “Springtime for Hitler” from Mel Brooks’ The Producers, which mocked the glamorisation of fascism. Did you mean that?

Comment is about Haiku don Bhliain 2025 [Uimhir a cúig déag 15 on Victory (over what?) Day] (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Thanks @Uilleam 🙏🏻🕊️

Comment is about they thread between us (blog)

Original item by Red Brick Keshner

And extremely glad we are to have you, Graham. The value of what you do, both for our online community members, and for Write Out Loud, is huge.

A personal thank you to you.

PS, I love your idea of a poetic diary as your family's inheritance. Perhaps interest in it could be wider than your family?

Comment is about Our team members: meet the folk behind the scenes at Write Out Loud (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Thank you so much for commenting on my poems.
With love and warmest wishes,
Karisa

Comment is about Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh (poet profile)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Thanks for likes: Yanma Hidayah, Uilleam, Hélène & Red Brick Keshner. 👍

Comment is about Broken (blog)

Original item by Tom Doolan

Good to see you back here Ian. With such a strong piece too!

Comment is about Victory (blog)

Original item by Ian Whiteley

Thanks Jordyn.
I interpret solitude as a condition that one chooses or seeks out, and which can be beneficial, say to an artist.
Loneliness, on the other hand, is not chosen, and can be harmful.

Comment is about Solitude (blog)

Original item by Jordyn Elizabeth

Thank you Larisa.
Such is the sick state of the world that I in the UK now worry about my loved ones being recruited to fight.

I don't know exactly when it originated - I think it may have been during the Vietnam War - but I remember the anti-war protest cry: "Make love, not war!"

Unfortunately, corrupt politicians and arms dealers know that there is a lot of money to be made from provoking wars - they literally "make a living by killing"!
💐🌷

Comment is about The Ballad About the Soldier (blog)

Original item by Larisa Rzhepishevska

This story is about the soldier, an ordinary guy

Those who wanted to live didn't want to die.

He was a good friend, his classmates said,

The things he did were not a regret.



He lived and dreamed, breathed the same air with us,

He was so naive, and it was his plus.

He was the guy of ready sympathy and bravery

just an ordinary guy who would never like to be a
slave.




Nobody could deny that he was a bit of a hesitant guy

as he couldn't make his girlfriend a declaration of love,

to tell her that she was his darling dove.

He didn't want to kill or be killed, just hated the war

But he's got an order and has to go to the war

without even knowing what for.



He was told that he would save the land

And military service was a big grand.

He was not told why he should kill,

He went to the war against his will.



But he was the servant of his country, and had to obey the orders

and wear the soldiers' straps on his shoulders.

Have you ever seen the eyes of his mother when they were to part?

She had an embarrassed look when the parting started.



Have you ever seen the eyes of his girlfriend?

They were the eyes of a frightened creature.

She felt as if he would never again reach her.

Have you ever seen the guy's eyes?



They had a look as he was in a hook.

He didn't want to part with his family, friends, and beloved,

He wanted to live, love, and be loved.

In a foreign, strange land, he walked

had no time to sleep or talk.




He walked and walked through the stormy winds,

through the hard rains without any complaints.

He walked through the mud and blood

as he had to obey the orders and remember,

He was not a cub and had no time for a cud.



But! All of a sudden, everything around became dark,

His body felt a terrible pang

And it seemed to him as the bell rang.

Then the pain disappeared, and he saw a beautiful park


Yes, he went to another world where everything was pearled.

With the loss of one soldier, nothing has changed,


But! Is it really so? For his mother, he was the world

And it was strange that she wouldn't be able to see him,

to hear his voice,
and... if only she had a choice...

She would give anything for his knock at the door
and his voice to shout once more.

And his voice telling her: Don't worry, Mam!
I am in a hurry,

But I'll come back soon
before the rising Moon.


The soldier's heart stopped beating far away from home

In a place with an unfamiliar name.
Now tell me! Who is to blame
Is his photo in the black frame?

He was one in the stream of soldiers,

the stream of broken destinies and lives,

The stream of unappeasable human sorrow

which made in the souls a deep furrow.

The war happened to be a thief

which had stolen lives or caused them great grief.



Life is going on; we live, we love, we work

building new bridges that were destroyed by war

But if we want to build a happy life

We have to remember the soldier who was killed in the war.

We have to understand: war can only ruin and break

for someone's crazy sake.



It ruins and kills not only human bodies

But destroys our wonderful land,

little by little, turning it into the sand.

We have to remember that a soldier

If we don't want the war to repeat,

We have to remember those losses

If we want our land to be complete.

We don't have to forget those who experienced the war,



They still get a start at hearing a thunderstorm

thinking it was another bomb.

We have to realize that even one soldier is a part of the world

And the loss of that soldier means a split

in the integrity of the whole world.



©Larisa Rzhepishevska

Comment is about The Ballad About the Soldier (blog)

Original item by Larisa Rzhepishevska

.................Bombing mothers and babies in maternity units?..................
.............................Unspeakable crimes against humanity?............................
....................................war criminals running the UK.....................................

........................................................ÇA NE FAIT RIEN!...............................................

Comment is about Haiku for 2025 [No. 14 Up Yours Starmer!] (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Thank you, Uilleam and Graham. Yes, the wisdom of old men seems in short supply at the moment. The second opinion is a good point, Graham.

And thanks to all who liked this poem.

Comment is about Old Men (blog)

Original item by Stephen Gospage

Starmer?
Bob on!

Comment is about Haiku for 2025 [No. 14 Up Yours Starmer!] (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Awful. Truly awful.

Comment is about Haiku for 2025 [No. 14 Up Yours Starmer!] (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

A beautiful meditation on resilience and hope, Rolph! 🌷

Comment is about Uncharted Light (blog)

Original item by Rolph David

yaasss, thank you Uilleam!

Comment is about Her Flower (blog)

Original item by Yanma Hidayah

Bitter! That takes me back, Uilleam. I've not drunk that in decades.
Funny how smells etc delight or disgust different people - although i rarely smoke anymore i still love the smell. And I was talking to another autistic person recently, and we both oddly agreed that both petrol and tar smelled nice.
Sounds can be appealing or appalling too - bouncing balls set my teeth on edge, whereas things like boots on gravel, or close-mic'd voices are what i fall 'chewy' sounds: i can almost taste them, and can lose myself in them.

Comment is about Fragment From An Oddly Remembered Dream #10: At The Barricades (blog)

Original item by Martin Peacock

I wonder if I can Cash in on it.

Comment is about The cowboy and the royal (blog)

Original item by Kevin Vose

As with most things having a strong source of second opinion is usually more productive than tyranny.
Having watched Trump with Mark Carney, his idiocy and verbal diarrhoea shone out. I've never wished my time away but I wish he would disappear sometime soon.

Comment is about Old Men (blog)

Original item by Stephen Gospage

A great poem, Clare. Generous and intimate. A poem about being human.

Comment is about Real. (blog)

Original item by Clare

Oh, and cobblers to being "nuanced", Stephen.

The so-called "Dame" who, hiding behind "Parliamentary Privilege" vilely accused Jeremy Corbyn of being - I quote - a "fucking anti-semite" in Parliament wasn't in the least bothered about "nuance" or the truth.

Murder is Murder!

Comment is about Propaganda (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Thanks, Stephen.
...and we're told by grovelling establishment figures we should respect them!

Comment is about Old Men (blog)

Original item by Stephen Gospage

I have to say, my rising with the sun and the birdsong frequently results in my doing the most useful reading, studying or writing, accomplishing what might have taken some days, in a couple of hours.

Comment is about Live Wide Awake (blog)

Original item by Aisha Suleman

I was out walking, on a rough waterworks track, on the top of the moors, almost benighted, when two women driving a hefty four-wheeled drive vehicle loaded with massive amplifiers and speakers asked me directions.
They were on their way to a gig in a village about five miles away, and admitted to being completely lost, having relied on sat-nav.
I pointed to a road about three miles away and about three hundred feet below us, in the hazy distance. "You need to be down there" I said.
The ability to navigate reading an OS map is being lost as people without common sense or experience fall for the latest gimmicks.

Comment is about Sat Navigation (blog)

Original item by Rick Varden

A boy name Sue sued the Sioux!

Comment is about The cowboy and the royal (blog)

Original item by Kevin Vose

Thanks, Rolph.

To hope we must dare,
all they have's despair.

Comment is about Uncharted Light (blog)

Original item by Rolph David

Thank, Clare, very touching.

Comment is about Real. (blog)

Original item by Clare

Well-observed RBK.

we say we walk freely,

but the road has already been carved.

Comment is about they thread between us (blog)

Original item by Red Brick Keshner

Hope springs eternal.

Comment is about Her Flower (blog)

Original item by Yanma Hidayah

Thanks, Martin for that sighing sussuration, very poetic!

I have to say, I just can't stand the smell of weed, makes me want to throw up-that and bitter that's off.

Comment is about Fragment From An Oddly Remembered Dream #10: At The Barricades (blog)

Original item by Martin Peacock

Thanks Y’all for your comments and likes.
Nigel Astell
hugh
Stephen Gospage
Aisha Suleman
Holden Moncrieff
Auracle
Yanma Hidayah
Kenny West

I know my humble scribblings aren’t up to the standards of a potential Poet Laureate, a Shakespeare or a Wordsworth, for that, I offer grovelling apologies.

The term “Rant” is all too frequently used as a put down, to belittle the opinions and work of the author. Definition of a rant? well, my poem isn’t “uncontrolled” and doesn’t say “confused or silly” things. Yes, I’m writing in a “shouty” and “angry way” - and my poem isn’t a debate about whether the BBC is “right or left wing”.

It’s about what are now undisputable facts – the suppression of which requires the harrassment, murder and imprisonment of journalists, poets and peaceful protestors.
It’s about the decades long, systematic genocide and ethnic cleansing of innocent civilians, literally on an industrial scale, known in some circles as “Mowing the Lawn”.

All that, with the help of UK armed forces, (the USA, using Irish airspace), the complicity of UK political leaders and a corrupt propaganda machine paid for by UK citizens’ “tax- pounds”. If that doesn’t warrant anger, then what does?

Fortunately, I do have access to adequate suppllies of loo roll and so don’t have to rely on likes of the Daily Heil or the Torygraph - not very kind to my nether regions – and for some years now, I’ve been unable to rely on Auntie.

Remember Auschwitz? Amnesia’s easier.

Comment is about Propaganda (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

As am I, Graham. Thank you so much for being so supportive of my work. It’s a wonderful thing to be acknowledged by your contemporaries. I appreciate you very much. 🙏🏻

Comment is about Real. (blog)

Original item by Clare

As you maybe aware from my poetry I am a big advocate for short lines.
This is very effective Claire.

Comment is about Real. (blog)

Original item by Clare

Oi! Did you steal my line!😂😂😂
I loved your poem. 🤗

Comment is about Butterflies Alight (blog)

Original item by John E Marks

Thank you to all of you who've read, liked or commented upon this ''ere pome-a-penny-each. Perhaps the birds have known/Since the beginning of time. P'raps.

Comment is about Butterflies Alight (blog)

Original item by John E Marks

Higher Clare, please. Father Ted explaining perspective to Father Dougal McGuire.

The higher we soar the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly.

Friedrich Nietzsche

Comment is about 10,000 Hours. (blog)

Original item by Clare

Your words deeply resonate with the sentiment I aimed to convey in the poem and your understanding Rolph is beautifully articulated.
Thank you

Comment is about SOUL OF MY SOUL (blog)

Original item by Naomi

Thanks for all your likes
Uilleam
Red Brick Keshner
Hugh
Ruth
Holden
Stephen G
and
Aisha.

Comment is about To Please or Not to Please (blog)

Original item by Nigel Astell

Thank you very much for reading, and the lovely comments.

Comment is about The 'Perfect Son' (blog)

Original item by Mike Bartram

Very perceptive and disturbing, Rolph. The idea of peace being 'locked behind a plastic smile' is rendolent of much that is going on at the moment.

Comment is about Vine* And Punishment (blog)

Original item by Rolph David

This is really beautiful, Aisha.

Comment is about To My Wonderful Son On Your Birthday (blog)

Original item by Aisha Suleman

I’m happy that the BBC is considered right-wing by the Left and left-wing by the Rught.

Comment is about Propaganda (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

I enjoyed this poetic rant, Uilleam, although my instinct is to be more nuanced. Out of fashion at the moment, but what can you do?

Comment is about Propaganda (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

Thanks Rolph.
Then let's not be silent:
those of us who can, get out there and give 'em "what for", as they say in these parts!😡👍

Comment is about Vine* And Punishment (blog)

Original item by Rolph David

One of the reasons that I was in favour of keeping the TV licence, was that I thought it would ensure the accountability of the powers that be.

Couldn't have been more wrong: a whole Corporation bought and paid for.

We, the public are paying for evil-doing.

Comment is about Propaganda (blog)

Original item by Uilleam Ó Ceallaigh

I love the sweep and ambition of this, Clare.

Comment is about 10,000 Hours. (blog)

Original item by Clare