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LEST WE FORGET
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 fought in and the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies;
they were heroes, everyone.
And tho’ sometimes to his
neighbours, his tales became a joke,
All his Legion buddies listened,
for they knew whereof he spoke.
But we'll hear his tales no longer,
for old Bill has passed away
And the world's a little poorer,
for a soldier died today.
He well not be mourned by many,
just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary quiet and
uneventful life,
Held a
job and raised a family, quietly going his own way;
And the world won’t note his
passing, 'tho a soldier died today.
When politicians leave this earth,
there bodies lie in state,
While thousands note there passing
and proclaim that they are great,
Papers tell there life stories from
the time that they are young,
But the passing of a soldier goes
unnoticed and unsung.
In the greatest contribution to the
welfare of our land
A guy
who breaks his promises 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?
A politician's stipend and the
style in which he lives
Are sometimes disproportionate to
service that he gives,
While the ordinary soldier, who
offers up his all,
Is paid
off with a medal, and perhaps a pension small.
It's so easy to forget them, for it
was so long ago
That the
Old Bill's of our country went to battle, but we knew
It was 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 want a politician with
his ever-shifting stand?
Or would you prefer a soldier who
has sworn to defend
His
home, his kin and country and 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 like again,
For when countries are in conflict
then we find the soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles
that the politicians start.
If we cannot do him honour 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 a
paper that would say;
OUR
COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING, FOR A SOLDIER DIED TODAY.
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