Friday, November 11, 2011

Good night God bless

The soldier stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.

"Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To my Church have you been true?"

The soldier squared his soldiers and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills just got too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the soldier waited quietly,
For the judgement of his God.

"Step forward now, you soldier,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

Author Unknown

8 comments:

Unknown said...

Dylan,this is so sad.....we remember those who lost their lives for us...

ellen vargo designs said...

Beautiful... Love it. :)

Mo said...

Beautiful poem. My husband is a Vietnam vet and it brought tears to his eyes.

Cardarian said...

Made me cry! Beautiful!
Hugs,
Cardarian

betjunroe said...

This is a beautiful poem, Dyan. Thanks for printing this to remind us of all the sacrifices our soldiers make to keep us safe. Bette

sixofone aka Leah said...

What a beautiful moving poem. I will be forever grateful to those who lost their lives or their loved ones so we are free to live our lives without fear

Anne said...

Beautiful. Anne

Sandra Hall said...

Back home and able to blog, just catching up with my faves :)
Thought provoking poetry Dy and very beautiful.

Quote of the Century


"You are an extraordinary woman.


How can you expect anything ordinary to happen to you"


Louisa May Alcott