Veterans · Military Families · All who have suffered trauma

A world of words that heals

FLOW is a safe, open community where poems, stories, letters and lyrics help people process trauma, share their truth, and feel less alone — in honour of our late patron, Dame Vera Lynn.

Scottish Charitable Organisation · SC050666 · Don't worry about spelling — just write

20%

of people exposed to mass violence develop PTSD

8M+

adults diagnosed with PTSD in a given year

more likely — women are disproportionately affected by PTSD

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I am Learning …

I am learning the road to perfection Is along distance And some may say out of reach But I am learning that there is no harm In the human form trying to achieve perfection For in life we are but only A walk away from destruction or an empire An over whelming desire to...

HOPE

Hope knows no fear It does not prey on the weak Nor does it depend on the breaking down of goodwill Hope rises with the belief That life is a precious gift beyond meaning Hope does not depend or wait on weakness Hope depends on the soul to tackle the inner demons one...

The Shadow of Angels

St Andrew’s Bridge was where they all came The sad, and the lonely, and the might-have-been To drown in a river with a once-famed name And be laid on a slab till the faculty claimed. And some would come to be ‘hanged til’ death’ And to curse the judge with their dying...

The Coming Dawn

Though praised by all when you were born The birds were speechless in their song… White-lilac scents the month of May Now warmer days are on their way. How lovely is the month of June With all the roses full in bloom. And, then, the summer comes to pass The trees in...

CRAZY AUTUMN NIGHT

The wind blew leaves on pavements, cold They swirled in doorways, dim In desolation now she walked Her thoughts were all of him Though cold and wet she still walked on To where? She did not know She fought so hard to understand Just why he had to go A love like theirs...

Gardenstown – N E Scotland

Gardenstown – N E Scotland North Sea lashes the grey-walled fishing harbour tied up boats never still, ropes straining, constantly fidgeting. Cacophony of clanking rides on waves of the Force 10 gale. Folk in stone washed cottages along Seatown, keep their bright...

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A Good Nights Sleep

A moth’s bedazzled by the light The shadows tiptoe through the night Within the prison of your mind Your demons will your weakness find The moonlight slowly fades away An owl swoops low above its prey The wind is gathering in its strength The willows’ branches writhe...

On Visiting Cockermouth

Though Man would harness wind and sun The few can to their dreams return… The variety of textures both rugged and divine The Other -we have come to fear to worship as sublime A common sight, a glorious scene How sad, how happy, life can seem Though we have grown to...

TREES

Each magnificent tree could tell a story Of horror and death and sometimes glory Those trees of which some still remain Have seen battles fought in their domain They have seen soldiers giving all they can Seen the bravery of man Seen anger, hatred, blood and gore And...

The Blooded Field

It’s quiet now, the guns have gone The poppies have stayed to remind everyone Of the horror of death And the blood that was spilled by the thousands of men Who went there to be killed. It’s the war to end wars was said by some But it was just a rehearsal for the other...

GRATITUDE

To you who send our kin to war, When they are fallen you need not; Doff the headdress; Bow the head; Stand to in the stillness; Lower the flag; Muffle the bells; Toll the knell; Beat the drum roll; Skirl the funereal air; Shuffle the slow march; Sound the last post;...

Her Daddy meant the World to her

Her daddy meant the world to her. He was the strength, the pillar, the support that held her world together, but daddy was gone. He was in Northern Ireland supporting the troops that were trying to keep the peace. She didn’t understand the politics of it all, she just...

A lucky game of poker

Major Jim Blackburn leant back in the canvas chair. His elbow rested on a wooden bench made of local Afghan plywood so dry it was almost desiccated. He looked at the cards in his hand. The three and four of clubs, the eight of spades, nine of diamonds and the jack of...

Sins of the Parents

He was tall. More than that I couldn't say, as his face was shielded by his hat and the collar of his raincoat. I took the envelope from his hand. He walked away. “Wait,” I said, “ We need to talk.” “It's all right Carol. Everything you need to know is there.” I...

Josh

My grandson and I were clearing out the attic, making room for the conversion work that would provide extra space, when we found it, an old photograph of Josh. We were moving old steamer trunks full of newspaper cuttings and photo albums and we happened on one that...

Hop-picking, our summer holidays in 1950

At the age of 5 our mum must have had the worst possible start in life as in WW1 she lost her dad, John Sheldon. He died in Hamburg a POW on the 23rd December 1918. But her misery wasn’t to end there as in WW2 she also lost her husband Edwin Webb, this on the 30th May...

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"Through my own experiences in talking with the boys and girls about their thoughts on war and how they felt about going into action… through poetry they express themselves with absolute clarity, deep feeling and simplicity. I only have to read 'In Flanders Field' or Kipling's 'Tommy' to fully appreciate and be thankful for the beauty of FLOW. We must never forget them."

Dame Vera Lynn DBE — Our late patron, 1917–2020

Dame Vera Lynn, patron of FLOW for All