POETRY PAGE
UNKNOWN HEROES ALL THE SAME
By Donald E. Colvin
The Unknown Soldiers of all wars.
Army, Navy, air, marine corps.
But you do not know them yet.
They are the one’s that you forget.
He does not rest at Arlington.
For his life may not be done.
He may be dead or still alive.
But throughout time he will survive.
Every day he’s being borne.
Still he’s dying all the time.
You might find him in a tomb.
Or living in the memory gloom.
They’re not heroes by media right.
But I still see them in that light.
For they each did live the days.
When their souls were set ablaze.
When those dreadful killing times.
Full of horror filled their minds.
The fear and terror being feed.
By friends and foe there lying dead.
No they do not reside at Arlington.
Still their duty was well done.
The soldiers not in hero’s glaze.
Who fought their fight in shadowed haze.
They are the soldiers not in lights.
Still they fought the hero’s fights.
They fought and died and some still live.
They’ve given all a man can give.
Though they’re not in history book.
They still came forth and lives were took.
No they do not live in halls of fame.
Unknown hero’s all the same.
REFLECTIONS AT THE WALL
By Marie Heil (John Heil’s wife), Memorial Day 2001
I sit here and watch as people walk by
In silence they go with a tear in their eye.
Respectfully they pass The Wall build of stone
That lists the names of those not coming home.
Family and friends leave flowers, notes and such,
Memories of those who are loved so much.
Emotions releasing, tears we have cried,
Our hearts are heavy for those who have died.
Etched in rows are the names of comrades who fell,
But some veterans today go through a private hell.
Their battles continue day after day,
The sadness and sorrow will not go away.
From the north, the south, the east and the west,
These heroes are among America’s best.
We must remember, we must never forget
Those who answered the call, the Vietnam Vet.
WAR
By Steffen ” Steve ” Boyd
War, a mistress of the devil,
She is unmerciful and two faced.
She will show us the glory of battle,
The good fight, the victory…the honorable death.
But turn her inside out, and you will
Find the insanity and chaos of killing,
Maiming, and the obliteration of all that is in her path.
Her destructiveness is blind and unbiased.
She is void of compassion and sympathy.
Her appetite for the living is insatiable…
She is always eating.
When will we not study her anymore?
THE SOLDIER AND THE BEAST
By Steffen ” Steve ” Boyd
To go away and never return
Is a consequence of war.
Because when flesh and bullet meet as one
A soldier can suddenly become no more.
In just the twinkling of an eye
His existence can come to a harsh and brutal end.
Not only as a soldier
But also as a husband, brother, father, son and friend.
And for the soldier who does return
He often wonders why.
That during the war dragon’s bloody feast
He decided to pass him by.
A KISS FOR YOU
By D. J. Colvin
I saw myself die today,
I could not prevent it, nothing I could say.
Well, Im dead now, as you can see,
So I sent death to give you, a kiss for me!
This poem was submitted by Don Colvin Jr, “this poem was written by my son at a time when there was a lot of turbulence in
our lives, at about age 11 or 12. We were just about at the end of my second marriage with a lot of resentment and I think
that was the source of this writing. Too deep for a child that age but good, don’t you think? I’ve included it because it
is the way most of us felt at times over there.”
MEN OF WAR
By Melinda Sue Lantz
Someone told me the other day,
Of the men who were blown away.
And the ones that did survive,
Didnt know that they were not alive
For power was given to the fools,
Who dropped their agent without rules.
Showered men with creeping death,
And took away their elder breath.
And with this stupid evil war,
The one they gave no reason for,
Went the lives of many men,
Still dying now as well as then.
This poem was submitted by Don Colvin Jr, “written by an amazingly enlightened lady that I became good friends with after
my second marriage failed; for an Uncle who was lost over there.”
NO WAY HOME
By Donald E Colvin
Thats the way we felt the first day across the pond,
Confused and scared and a year seemed so long.
We were fighting for our country in a strange and distant land,
For reasons that werent right or clear enough to understand
Alone and frightened from the first day we arrived,
Whats that smell? It seems to threaten my very life.
The odor is the stench of burning death,
Reminds us of the danger near, with our every breath.
Situation well in hand, the politicians think they understand,
But its we who face death alone.
Now I come to understand, from this hell in this strange land,
There may be,—NO WAY HOME.
So without much thought, through the Delta to the ashau valley we fought,
Friends dying,—and I killing,—such emotions in my thought.
And in my thoughts, fallen Brothers from bullets caught,
So in my rage, this vow I made, Id kill them all before Id drop.
By day wed make revenge our mark, and seek to put a bullet in their heart,
By night in a hole wed cringe, for we knew that Charley owned the dark.
It seemed Id never see my world again, or bullshit with a friend,
I knew my number might be close by then, only question, how and when.
It was then that it hit home, and it chilled me, to the bone,
Crystal clear and set in stone, from this hell there is,—NO WAY HOME.
Then there were strangers, the new troops came rolling in,
Terrified replacements, carry on, for each lost friend.
I tried to keep them distant, I dont need no friend,
When a brother is lost, the pain is much too great, to ever do it again.
In time our hearts were hardened and we became resistant,
We knew the ugly head of death, could show at any instant.
For one year on foot, by huey and Chinook this perilous land Id roamed,
One day I realized that time was close at hand, for me to head back home.
And if my mind could survive, and I could stay alive, I thought to myself alone,
Though its hard to believe, there might for me, some how be,
—SOME WAY HOME
And now it seems hard to contrive, that a man could survive, and only come home to find,
A country so ungrateful, and the people so hateful, and a government so unwilling to stand behind.
And the one I used to be before I crossed the pond, man, hes all gone you see,
So now youll have to deal with me, and stop looking for the one I use to be.
And now, more than twenty confusing years and millions of mixed up miles later, this poem.
And now I know,..Ive always known,..I was right the first time
..there is
—NO WAY HOME
RAP POEM
By Bradley N Jimerson
I am a Veteran and what can I say
‘cept I am Airborne all the way–
Now during my Tour; sixty-seven-sixty-eight
I was wounded by mortar that did not wait–
Lost left eye by metal from a strong exploded shell
then was flown to DaNang ’cause I was not well–
A doctor there said, “He’s out, not going back”
(At least not sent home, home in a sack)–
By chopper they sent me to a hospital ship
where the doctors operate and don’t want to slip–
Those that patched me, first cut through my skull
to take metal out so I would heal well–
They kept me on the ship for ’bout fifteen days
then they flew me back home…(USA!) to stay–
In Letterman General Hospital, California state
months of re-learning ’cause my reading was late–
Then, well enough to live-in with Mom and step-dad
like other Nam-vets, was happy but sad–
August sixty-eight on a wonderful day
with hospital retirement along with pay–
Today I am happy in happy tears
’cause God his given me extra years.
This page was suggested by Don Colvin Jr (class of 67-68)
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