The War Sirens and the shelter

The War Sirens and the shelter

The air raid shelter was crowded tonight,
we could hear the sirens blowing loud,
people were frightened, children were crying,
as more and more joined the crowd.
We shuffled together beneath the ground,
with hardly enough room to move along,
and above our heads in the darkness,
came the frightening war siren song.

I could feel my heart beating in my ears,
I thought I was going to pass out,
then suddenly over all the frightened voices,
we heard the warden shout,
“Clear that doorway, move yourselves down,
people have got to get in and out.”
Nobody argued, nobody complained,
we knew what this night was about.

The children huddled together on the floor,
one little girl held her teddy tight,
another buried his head in his mother’s coat,
too frightened to look at the light.
A little boy whispered, “Will our house be there
when we go back home tomorrow?”
His mother kissed the top of his head,
hiding her own fear and sorrow.

We all moved down towards a table,
where somebody was making a brew,
a battered old kettle, enamel mugs,
and toast being passed around too.
Funny how a cup of tea can warm you,
when fear has frozen you through,
but it never took away the terror
of what we already knew.

German aircraft were flying overhead,
we could hear their engines in the sky,
then came the terrible whistling sound,
and somebody started to cry.
We looked at one another silently,
not knowing where the bombs would fall,
and suddenly that little shelter
didn’t feel very safe at all.

I wished that I was back at home,
tucked up in my own cosy bed,
not underground with fear in my body,
my heart and inside my head.
I wanted my pillow, I wanted my room,
I wanted this nightmare gone,
but all we could do was sit together
and listen to that siren song.

Someone started telling a funny story,
another poured out more tea,
an old lady shared her blanket
with a child sitting next to me.
Strangers became like family that night,
because fear didn’t care who you were,
we shared our toast, our blankets and hope,
while destruction flew through the air.

Hours seemed more like days down there,
until finally the noise disappeared,
we waited for somebody to tell us
the words we’d prayed to hear.
Then came the all-clear through the night,
and everyone started to rise,
grown men hugged one another,
with thankful tears in their eyes.

No bombs had landed on us that night,
praise be to the Lord above,
He certainly protected us
and sent His angels down with love.
We climbed from beneath that shelter,
and saw morning beginning to come,
and every tired pair of feet
started slowly walking home.

So for now we’ll carry on again,
as though nothing had been wrong,
but how do you forget the fear of the night,
or that terrible siren song?
How do you butter your toast next morning,
and simply carry on with your day,
when only hours before you wondered
if your life might be taken away?

We have to unite, we have to stand,
and show togetherness in this bloody war,
we have to hold each other up,
united like never before.
For when the darkness frightens us,
together we shall remain strong,
until one day there are no more bombs,
and no more war siren songs.

I know the Lord will protect us,
as we pray for the fighting to cease,
and guide every country involved
towards understanding and peace.
And when the skies are quiet again,
and frightened children can safely play,
perhaps we’ll remember that crowded shelter,
and the strangers who helped us through that day.

For war may shake the windows,
and sirens may scream all night long,
but it cannot destroy our togetherness,
and it cannot silence our song.
So put the kettle on, pass the toast,
hold that frightened little hand tight,
because whatever waits above us—

we stand together tonight.