The Last Expedition Poem by Charles Orwell

Dedication to Robert Falcon Scott,
Who died going for his dreams.

"But take comfort in that I die in peace with the world and myself - Not afraid" -Robert Falcon Scott

Frostbite has consumed two of my left toes
My men all cry there woes
Words blocked by chattering teeth
Death is near
The reaper whispers in each person ear
A calm warm whisper
Luring them to the end
But still my men resist
And so do I
For only when it is necessary
And the pain is too much
Will I let go

Small nods at each other
Now and again
Echo a thousand words
Words of respect, love and wisdom
For even though we are young on the outside
Inside we are old
The Antarctic the loneliest place in the world,
A place of Complete solitude
But here with my men
It is not lonely

I have fought in battles before
At Sea and land
But now in this waking hour
I fight the hardest battle of all
The battle of the mind
My body want to shut down
But my mind says no
Who will win?
I don't know
But I can steadily envision the end game

It has been a honour to serve
With these fine breeds
I may not be a great explorer
But no one
No one
Can take away what we have achieve
The road we took
Was the least travelled
And it made all the difference

Death is near now
Do not be sad
Know I died nobly
With the world
And myself not afraid
Fighting death grasp
To the very end
The very end
very end