M.B. HENRY 
Poetry Break – “Let Me Tell You How I Died” – Stalingrad
As promised, here is another portion of the 21-segment poem epic I wrote recently. The segments are divided into three parts, and this is the second segment of Part I. Part I covers many different angles and viewpoints of World War II.
I hope you enjoy -and stay tuned for more in the coming weeks!
LET ME TELL YOU HOW I DIED
PART I – SEGMENT 2
Stalingrad
It was a daring move, a stroke so bold
We thought the victory would be pure as gold
But it was just one of Hitler’s many lies
When we went into Russia, we got a surprise
The Russians were ready, they knew how to fight
Their numbers were plenty, as was their might
They take no prisoners, they fight to the death
They’ll kill every one of us, take every breath
They also had another friend on their side
One we couldn’t fight no matter how hard we tried
The Russian winter, the snow, the cold
The ice, the bitterness, it killed young and old
Deep in the freeze, we still fought the war
No food, no warmth, nothing to fight for
Building to building, brick by brick
All on the snow and the ice so slick
By the time we were through, a million were dead
I was just one lost, my story unsaid
I froze to death in a field of snow
Goodbye cruel world, peace I’ll never know
To Be Continued…
For further information about this poem, and the first segment, click here
I had an excellent vacation in Tucson, Arizona last week. Thanks for your patience while I took time to refuel! To view some fabulous additions to my Arizona photo album, click here.
This is a wonderful poem. It is also sad and paints a clear picture of the horrors of war.
Thank you – war is pretty much awful from every angle, that’s for sure.
Love how you are giving voice to those who are lost, while expressing the horror and tragedy of it.
Thank you! I’ve studied military history for years and it has had a powerful effect on me. Glad to get some of it out in poem form. Glad you stopped by too! 🙂
So sad – so wonderfully written!
Thank you! It’s a hard thing to try and capture
This is epic 🙂
Thank you!
Chilling lines, I can almost feel the frozen claw of death taking its victims.
Winter is a powerful enemy sometimes!
Another moving post. Oh, the relentless Russian winter. Our son lived there. One evening a friend left his apartment and froze to death on the sidewalk.
Oh my goodness thats awful. Im so sorry!
What a terrible time and place to be, caught between dictators whose stubbornness was only exceeded by their brutality.
I find the Eastern front in WWII to be some of the hardest reading.
A friend of ours was a Ukrainian whose father fought for the Germans. When you understand the history of the Ukraine, you can understand his actions. Many Russians did likewise, it is why Stalin populated the Gulag with so many returning POW’s. It was a horrible and confusing time, made worse by Stalin and his henchmen.
Believe me, I understand! Horrible and confusing time is a perfect way to describe it. From the reading I’ve done (what I can stomach anyway) I don’t know how anyone survived it at all. It breaks my heart.
I can picture this scene vividly from your poem! I love that you are capturing this moment in history in poetic form. I look forward to reading more of these.
Thank you! Glad it brings some of this to life for you. I’m very passionate about not forgetting our past. I really enjoyed your post yesterday! Hope you’re doing well
You clearly have a good understanding of military history, MB, a great accomplishment that will serve you in many ways.
Thank you! It’s my biggest passion actually! So glad you gave this a read and enjoyed it.
A grim event, and you’ve portrayed it vividly (the feeling of betrayal, the cold, the hopelessness).
I just finished reading Anne Applebaum’s “The Gulag” and, while it doesn’t deal directly with WWII, it certainly talks about the gulag’s relationship with the Soviet army. But, you’ve probably read it already.
I have not actually! There are so many books and so little time 🙂 perhaps I shall add it to my list
I am love reading about WWII, despite how horrible it was (war is always horrible) but I love how you captured the emotions of war! Another wonderfully written post!
Thank you! I’m in the same boat as you. I spend a lot of time reading about war. It’s hard reading sometimes, but I feel it teaches a lot about the complexities of human kind. So glad you enjoyed the post.
I agree. The stories are very sad but interesting!
Great Poem!!!
Thank you!
A sad but true. It is touching to tell the story of so many. Nice share.
Thank you. It is indeed sad and I wanted to capture as many angles as I could. So many people caught up in all that! Thanks for giving it a read
Turning point of war in Europe
Absolutely!
What a unique kind of poetry! I have long been fascinated by WWII. My grandfather fought in it. It’s by far the most interesting part of history to me for some reason. Thank you so much for sharing your gift with us!
Im so glad you stopped by and enjoyed the poem. My grandfather and grandmother were both in the war so I too have a strong connection to it! Its a pleasure to meet a fellow WWII enthusiast. If you want any reading recommendations on the subject let me know. Thanks again for stopping by!
Yes please! I would love to hear what your favorite books are about it!
For overviews, I would say “Inferno” by Max Hastings and “Freedom From Fear” by David Kennedy are both very well done. Max Hastings has another one too called “Armageddon” that covers just the last year or so of the war. “D-Day” and “Citizen Soldiers” by Stephen Ambrose are good accounts of the American drive across Europe, and then “At Dawn We Slept” by Gordon Prange will tell you anything you ever wanted to know about Pearl Harbor. His follow up about the battle of Midway is also very good. These are just some of my favorites, let me know specific battles you’re interested in and I could give you more in depth recommends! 🙂
Wow, thank you for such a thorough answer! I look forward to taking advantage of your knowledge and recommendation 😊. How about the Battle of the Bulge, and Normandy?
Oh my are you speaking my language. I would say those two battles are my biggest area of expertise! For D-Day I would recommend Cornelius Ryan “the Longest Day” and “Nothing Less Than Victory” by Russell Miller is a fantastic collection of first hand accounts from many angles. Max Hastings (hes one of my favorites I’m sure you’ve caught on!) has a great one called “Overlord.” The bulge I would recommend charles Macdonald both his “Time for Trumpets” and “the Mighty Endeavor.” For memoirs I would recommend Omar Bradley’s “a soldier’s story” and patton’s “War as I Knew it.” A great first hand account collection for the Bulge is “a blood dimmed tide” by Gerald Astor. Let me know if you want more!
Fantastic! I’m really looking forward to checking these out. My grandpa survived Normandy. When my dad watched Saving Private Ryan, he wept, thinking about what his father must have experienced. My grandpa never wanted to talk about it much
I really hope you enjoy them. That is amazing about your grandfather. I can’t imagine what that must have been like for him. If you ever have any other questions please feel free to ask 🙂
I sure will! Truly, thank you so much! 😊
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Again I love this! Would love to repost.❤❤❤❤❤❤
There’s been some technical issues on my site when people try to repost, I’m still trying to get that figured out with wordpress – but you are more than welcome to if you are able! I’m very flattered you enjoyed it and feel moved to share it.
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