When we’ve washed our hands and brushed our hair,
Already for the night
We kneel quite close to Daddy’s chair
And Mummy dims the lights
And then we shut our eyes and pray
For Daddy who’s so far away

He seems quite near us while we kneel,
Before we go to bed
Why, sometimes I can almost feel
Dad’s kind hand on my head
As though he’s not so far away
As he seems to be, all through the day

Dear God, our Daddy overseas
We want him home again
Please keep him safe for us – God please!
Till the war is done, Amen!
Then Mummy says, “Goodnight now dears,
When kiddies pray, God always hears.”

Les Doggett

This poem was written by Les for his family whilst he was a Prisoner of War at
Stalag 4b during the Second World War. Thank you to Roy & Sheila Doggett for
their kind permission to print this poem.