Monday, April 9, 2012

An Ode to Our Country's Veterans

He was getting old and paunchy
And his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion,
Telling stories of the past.

Of a war that he once fought in,
And the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies;
They were heroes, every one.

And 'tho sometimes to his neighbors
His tales became a joke,
All his buddies listened quietly
For they knew where of he spoke.

But we'll hear his tales no longer,
For  ol' Joe has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer
For a Soldier died today.

He won't be mourned by many,
Just his children and his wife.
For he lived an ordinary,
Very quiet sort of life.

He held a job and raised a family,
Going quietly on  his way;
And the world won't note his passing, 
'Tho a Soldier died today.'

When politicians leave this earth,
Their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing,
And proclaim that they were great.

Papers tell of their life stories
From the time that they were young
But the passing of a Soldier
Goes unnoticed, and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution
To the welfare of our land,
Some jerk who breaks his  promise 
And cons his fellow man?

Or the ordinary fellow 
Who in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his  country 
And offers up his life?

The politician's stipend 
And the style in which he lives,
Are often disproportionate, 
To the service that he gives. 

While the ordinary Soldier,
Who offered up his all, 
Is paid off with a medal 
And perhaps a pension, small.

It is not the politicians 
With their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom 
That our country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger,
With your enemies at hand,
Would you really want some cop-out,
With his ever waffling stand?

Or would you want a Soldier
His home, his country, his kin,
Just a common Soldier,
Who would fight until the end.

He was just a common Soldier,
And his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us
We may need his likes again.

For when countries are in conflict,
We find the Soldier's part, 
Is to clean up all  the troubles
That the politicians start.

If  we cannot do him honor
While he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least  let's give him homage
At the ending of his days.

Perhaps just a simple headline 
In the paper  that might say:
"OUR  COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING,
A  SOLDIER DIED TODAY."

. . . Cribbed from, and With Thanks to  
the Gunslinger's Journal

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