happed in mist

Happed in mist these 25 eventful years seem to him now,
And in all but one a friendly gaze, a ghost of gladness by his side,
With horse and plough he marched with pride of the purest kind.
Then a blink of light and it's Flanders field and the end of time.
Through the flash and cannon roar, he saw his Christine's smiling eyes,
And with no more thought of blood or shell, he made his way to hold her near.
But Truth and Honour's henchmen found him leaving here,
A madman's rave, a coward's grave, for the volunteer.

And in his eyes flew snipe and curlew, and in his nose blew moistened air,
And in his mind the wood the King stole that robbed the land and laid it bare.
But in his heart his lover's memory, singing on their wedding night.
Where once the parks flowed thick with corn, that sullen tune is with him now.
Happed in mist, the Kings Own Rifles
Ready Aim
The flowers of the forest are a' we'ed awa'.