By Courtney Tanabe
Because of you, I am here
Because of you, I am able to live freely
Yet I do not know you
And I have not done anything for you
But there you stand, ready to fight
And there you are prepared to die
For me
You've fought before
And you'll fight again
For someone you don't know
So thank you Unknown Soldier
Fighting for me
I'm here because of you
And I owe my future to you
All day the guns had worked
their hellish will,
And all night long
With sobbing breath men
gasped their lives away
Or shivered restless on the ice-cold clay,
Till morn broke pale and chill
With sudden song.
Above the sterile furrows war
had ploughed
With deep-trenched seams,
Wherein this year such
bitter seed is sown,
Wherein this year no fruitful
grain is strown,
A lark poured from the cloud
Its throbbing dreams.
It sang — and pain and death
were passing shows
So glad and strong;
Life soared triumphant,
though a myriad men
Were swept like leaves beyond
the living's ken,
That wounded hope arose
To greet that song.
My father was in the Navy during WWII. His older brother, a Marine, was killed at Pearl Harbor. The next younger boy was Army and went to Europe. The youngest had a heart condition so he stayed behind and worked making aircraft.
Remember to say "thank you."
