Statue (In Honour of...) (Poetry)

They say it is a good likeness
but that is not enough
no doubt it will withstand the weather
his bronzed expression tough
it could be termed forbidding
or arrogant — aloof
no thought he might be tender
and who knows all the truth

His name. His dates. His status
The plinth gives us all that
this monument to greatness
but honour’s falling flat
Does it tell you who the man was?
What made him laugh? What caused him pain?
I’d have them melt that statue down
Think on ... Then start again

Whoever then takes on the job
needs to have the god-like art
of divining his humanity
portrayed in full — not part
The man was everything to some —
their world of flesh and blood
not a uniform with ribbons sewn
that ended caked in mud

There’s nothing of the father here
the lover or the clown
the man who wept when his horse fell
and they had to put it down
The sculptor might be gifted — won
the Turner — all that stuff
and it might be a good likeness
but that’s really not enough