American men and women serve our nation faithfully in far-flung corners of the world. Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan - each of these names conjures up ideas of the gallantry, dedication to service, and self-sacrifice with which Americans defend the people of these lands. The cost for our country has been enormous in terms of dollars and cents, equipment lost, and the tragic number of American servicemen and servicewomen who have been wounded or killed in the process. This original poem, first published in 2005, is displayed here to honor these brave men and women, and to pay tribute to their parents who wait wistfully at home.
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A Parent’s Lament
© 2005 Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.
My son put on a uniform,
Then went away to war.
He crossed the sea to serve on foreign land.
He lived with all the hardships
Of the desert’s cold and heat –
The monotony of the shifting, burning, sand.
He did not shirk his duty,
‘Though he sometimes questioned “Why?”
He tried to do what needed to be done.
He served with pride and honor
Befitting his young years,
As he trained beneath the scorching desert sun.
Then, when the shooting started,
When the fighting took its toll,
My son was one who sacrificed his all.
He died amidst the struggle
For a tiny, desert town –
He answered his last patriotic call.
They sent his body home to us,
He rests beneath the sod.
He’s home again, his earthly journey’s done.
He did his part for freedom’s sake,
He paid the highest price,
To guarantee the victory was won.
And, when the fight has ended,
And our sons have crossed the sea,
To be welcomed home with pageantry and cheers,
My son will lie beneath his stone –
He will not hear the bands,
Nor see my eyes which overflow with tears.
Dedicated to the men and women of the Armed Forces of the United States
who serve in Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Iraq,
and to the parents who wait at home.
God Bless America!
