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Mute the bugle silence the guns
And turn your face away.
No reason left to change opinion,
No reason left to stay.
A Soldier once
so Proud and strong.
Nothing could make him break.
Except for the signs
they carried once
Torn lives for protest sake.
No one will ever understand
The eyes that do not blink.
Leave it alone forget the past?,
But do they stop and think?
Could you forget the sound of breath?
cut off by a gasping cry.
Could you forget the
streams of blood
Continuous rain, a monsoon sky.
Instead of words you carried
Could you carry the weight of a Bro?
A lifeless friend as you cry out
Please say it isn't so.
Can you silence the echo
of a distant artillery blast
Or sleep with a memory
of a dying friend
Whose name is lost in the past.
Would the leeches suck your life away.
To the drop of a memory.
Would the smell of napalm
Scorch your senses
'Til 30 years later still be.
Could you wipe the spittle from your uniform
Grit your teeth and walk away.
And tuck it deep Inside your soul
To live with from day to day.
What if the fabric
of those were strong?
Could they swallow their Pride?
And admit they were wrong?
Here-in the Tragedy
will always lie.
They'll never change
And neither will I.
Place no marker
Upon the hill.
No stone and chiseled Name
But don't forget
the Soldier there,
On him don't place
The Blame!
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I think you told me your name
But over here, names all sound the same
I was more interested if you were in the game
And not just looking for a piece of fame.
We worked the gun together, both members of a team
Then that night as the dark sky gleamed
With fire, smoke and flying bullets, all around us it seemed
You were at my side, feeding me ammo, I heard you scream.
You suddenly slumped over, you this boy barely 18
Still trying your best to be brave and strong
I hold you in my arms and shout at you to stay
But the Lord had already taken you away.
And as terrible as it might seem
On this night of horrors, smoke and flames
If I had know you would be gone so soon
I'd remembered your name.
But as truth be known, here in Nam
There's no time to stop, the war goes on
And your place will be filled by another young boy
Who will look and act the same.
After the battle is over and I have time to reflect
I then wish I had known you better
And pray to the Lord above
That I could remember your name.
For without your name, I can't welcome you home
And may God forgive me,
But without your name
I can't even view you in stone.
