I volunteered to fight overseas
I knew what I was getting into, I thought
Until the enemy found me and forced me to my knees
I kept a stiff upper lip, as one ought
But I was abused and ridiculed
Sent to a camp a German Commandant ruled
And so I was left wholly distraught

I arrived at the camp at midnight
Met by two opposing colonels
One clearly cunning, swift, and bright
The other a leader of his fellow numbskulls
The American immediately disliked me as much as his German counterpart
He too ignores me, treats me without heart
So I sit here and write in my journals

I thought POWs would dedicate themselves to escape
But the men I am with do nothing of the sort
They make no effort to get out of this scrape
Apparently having no desire to flee this bloodsport
But they mostly ignore me
So I'm not sure why they don't wish to be free
And I think I'll leave, with or without an escort

I'll get away under cover of darkness
The guards are incompetent anyway
But the quiet night will alleviate my stress
After dinner tonight, I'll be on my way
Because being a POW is humiliating
Our treatment entirely degrading
So tonight, I will run away

I slip out of my barracks at half-past-two
Make the sign of the cross and pray silently
I get to the fence and shimmy through
Looking over my shoulder constantly
"What are you doing here?"
I nearly fall over in fear
I wasn't prepared for company

Trying to catch my breath, I realise
The man who spoke is a POW as well
I tell him, looking into his eyes:
"Every day feels like I'm in Hell"
The corporal nods with a smile
"You'll get over it in a while"
And that makes anger in me swell

"How can I?" I demand
I have no friends, no support, no love
I can count the words spoken to me on one hand
The corporal looks away, speaks to the sky above
"There are things I can't explain right now,
But soon you'll understand how"
And I'm forced back into the camp with a shove

So, the POWs spend time outside the fence
Yet they choose to remain in captivity
It occurs to me now, they must all be dense
Compliant in a state of misery
But why did the corporal say I'd understand?
I feel my supreme confusion expand
Surely, I'll never reach such vapidity

When I wake in the morning
All POWs are present and accounted for
The colonel gives me a look, a warning
He knows, then, that I'm done with being a prisoner of war
"No one leaves without my say-so," he tells me
Despite the firm words, he speaks gently
And I feel a sense of duty stir in my core

Maybe I was too hasty in my assessment
Maybe these men are not who I thought
Maybe it was unjust, my resentment
After all, like me, they fought
They are courageous for enduring this camp
Facing the atrocities, the cold, and the damp
They are brave for choosing to live after they were caught

/

Now, some time after the above was written,
I sit in a tunnel, raring to go
Ready to emerge from a passage quite hidden
By now, likely covered in snow
Because now I am a Hero like never before
Able to do my part to win the Second World War
And so my story ends, wrapped neatly in a bow