Where is the City of Benares? <br />I’ve searched hard to find its location, <br />I’ve looked at maps and searched the index of my atlas, <br />Thinking that it might be the capital of a great nation. <br /> <br />India, South America or the Middle East, <br />Each of these sound likely places for it to be located, <br />Then suddenly my searching came to an end, <br />When I discovered it was the name of a ship that was ill fated. <br /> <br />It was sailing in a convoy from England to Canada, <br />Ninety children were being taken there for the duration of the war, <br />Their parents had thought this would ensure their safety, <br />But very soon the ship way lying on the ocean floor. <br /> <br />The ship had been torpedoed by a German U boat, <br />Eighty three of the children would never be seen again, <br />Only seven of the ninety children were rescued, <br />The parents of the eighty three were left to feel the pain. <br /> <br />During the war many of our ships were sunk, <br />Countless lives were lost in tragedies at sea, <br />The Ark Royal, The Prince of Wales and the Hood are still remembered, <br />The names of other ships are lost to our memory. <br /> <br />The City of Benares will always be remembered <br />By the families of the children who were lost, <br />But we have to remember all those other ships, <br />When we calculate how much our freedom really cost. <br /> <br />History tells us of many cities which have been destroyed, <br />Sodom, Gomorrah and Pompeii are three we might recall, <br />But for the parents of those eighty three children, <br />The loss of the City of Benares was the greatest disaster of them all.<br /><br />tej Singh<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-city-of-benares/
