In memoriam: Robby L Robinson (1925-2010)
An ordinary New Jersey boy, nineteen.
In Brittany the shrapnel shell that killed
your pal, engendered dark, shut down a sheen
of innocence. Your generation filled
our stories, and some thanks that war was stilled
are owed. These lines, inadequate between
your monuments, my humble gift; a mean
repayment from a rhymer all unskilled
in awe, remembering your laughter: deep
chuckles you left around like colored light,
I knew why they all loved and cherished you.
Nursed well enough by grandma, always true,
to see you to the rest. Eternal quiet,
at Arlington an honored guest’s asleep.
In Brittany the shrapnel shell that killed
your pal, engendered dark, shut down a sheen
of innocence. Your generation filled
our stories, and some thanks that war was stilled
are owed. These lines, inadequate between
your monuments, my humble gift; a mean
repayment from a rhymer all unskilled
in awe, remembering your laughter: deep
chuckles you left around like colored light,
I knew why they all loved and cherished you.
Nursed well enough by grandma, always true,
to see you to the rest. Eternal quiet,
at Arlington an honored guest’s asleep.
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