II

Those spared—will die, those fallen—rise from under.
Then come the sons, remembering days far gone:
—And where were you ? —The words will roll like thunder,
The answer roll like thunder: —On the Don!

—What did you do? —We bore with grief and cruelty,
Then laid us down to sleep, our last strength gone.
And in the dictionary, over: Duty,
The grandsons, looking back, will write: the Don.

17 March 1918