My Arnhem Hero
by Sonia Parker Oct 2012

1st Battalion Parachute Regiment Arnhem Poem

This piece was written through spiritual inspiration, honouring the life and experience of a 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment soldier.

​He is off again to war once more
The most awesome sight you ever saw
A beret perched upon his head
A distinguished sight, the deepest red

On his way, he waves goodbye
Another journey in the sky
No-one knew what lay ahead
Thousands jumped and thousands dead

Out of the plane and on his way down
Shot in the back before he hit the ground
Captured and taken as prisoner of war
With so many others, so many more

Eight months of torture with nothing to eat
Cold, wet and hungry and nowhere to sleep
He could take no more of this living hell
He had to escape, and he did as well

Making his way through the woods by night
Desperately keeping himself out of sight
So weak and fragile and so very thin
To deserve all of this, what was his sin?

Two weeks went by, it felt like a year
Then all of a sudden he gave a cheer
His journey was over, in front of him stood
An american soldier, right there in the wood

Rescued at last, it was all now at an end
Along the way he had lost his best friend
Back in England, home at last
Never to mention his awful past

To help him forget his awful strife
He came home to his lovely wife
And in her arms she held tight
His six week old baby, what a sight

With so many others and without a fuss
I will never forget what he did for us
I will remember him always and when i'm sad
I remember the paratrooper...my hero...my Dad!

Last Edited 17.02.2021