Our Soldiers Return - (1945) Poem by Patricia Denise Newman

They came from fetid jungles
Men weary from the stench of war
Not looking for a hero's welcome
Just the peace of their own front door

As they stumbled down the gangplanks
Brown and battered, thin and worn
Welcomed home by waiting loved ones
To the land where they were born

Not for them the flags and glory
Nor for them the bands and cheers
For them their untold stories
Hidden in their unshed tears

With hands and hearts extended
They are welcomed home once more
Their war at last is ended
They are back on England's shore