Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Let Us Not Forget

~Siniphous

Row upon row of stark white stones
Against a sea of verdant green.
The sound of the wind through trees
So lonely and forlorn.
Beneath this hallowed landscape lies
The flowers of our time
Those who gave the final measure
For generations yet unborn.
Missing limbs and shattered dreams
Of youth cut short too soon;
Of missed opportunities
And promises unfulfilled.
Of love forever lost.
Called upon they came
And uncomplaining leapt into the flame
Of war and violence. Some are dead,
But all have paid the cost.
We mourn them and we give thanks
That such as these we breed
And have bred down through the ages.
Willing to charge into the jaws of death
For their beloved land.
The debt we owe we cannot pay.
We can but pray that they will know
That we honor them and their sacrifice.
Our efforts, weak though they may be –
We hope they understand.
Lift your heads, you valiant band.
March on to glory and renown.
March on, heads held high. Let spirits soar.
Be not deterred by fear of death or pain.
We who stay behind
Will not forget your sacrifice.
And what you gave
Will not have been in vain.