War haiku

sky

War cemeteries : Noyelles sur Mer

Noyelles sur Mer (France) . A World War I cemetery. We enter into an enclosed area deep in the fields by way of a door engraved with Chinese characters. An immense pine tree . . . and silence. I always like to come here. It is a place for memories. The members of a work brigade all lined up. They did the dirty work behind the front. All died from influenza. Wandering among the graves you can trace the progress of the illness.

soleil froid --
843 Chinois alignés
morts de la grippe
cold sun --
843 Chinese in rows
dead from the flu
Li Chan Kuel
17 Novembre 17
bambou dans la pluie
Li Chan Kuei
17 November '17 --
bamboo in the rain
tombe inconnue
au fond du cimetière
pluie fine --
unknown grave
at the back of the cemetery
light rain

Someone else is visiting this lost place. A family; the father makes the rounds of the graves. The girls are bored. A small slice of life, just a moment.

war cemetery
four sulky girls
in the rain

Serge Tomé (Belgium)