Don't Forget

But I still wake up

I still see your ghost

What do I stand for?

What do I stand for?

Most nights I don't know anymore.

It’s that time of year again.

Families pack up and go celebrate.

The smell of the grill fills up the outside pre summery air.

Hot dogs, brats, watermelon, and potato salad are consumed.

Millions see this weekend as a weekend to shop.

Ads are all over the radio and on television.

There are so many sales and deals to please us and our hungry selfish hearts.

I need this. I need that!

Its Memorial Day weekend!

 

To me, none of that matters.

 

Memorial Day is for remembering.

It’s not about the sales. The food. The parties.

 

It’s for those who served our country.

 

The people I always like to keep in mind are the children.

 

Don’t forget that boys lied about their age.

Don’t forget there were children who fought as soldiers.

Enlisters knew some were lying and took advantage of their innocent eagerness.

It’s fun! War is what I’m called to do. I want to be a hero!

Kids served as drummer boys who saw death.

They wanted to prove themselves.

Boys wanted to be men.

Don’t forget the gun shots blasting  all night.

Don’t forget their blood curdling cries as bullets hit their young bodies.  

Don’t forget the rage.

The confusion.

The madness.

The hatred.

The smoke.

Don't forget their their broken hearts.

Their yearning to be back home.

The strong smell of the gunfire.

The stinging taste of poisonous gas.

Their agonizing cries turned to screams.

Their screams eventually turned silent.

Perhaps all he wanted was to get away from his family.

A taste of freedom.

Or maybe he was trying to make his mother proud.

When he put on his uniform it made him feel important.

Brave.

All he wanted to be was a hero.

War is brutal.

It is savage.

It is something a child should never have been a part of.

Do not forget the children.

The children who died for our country.

 

As this Memorial Day weekend begins, laughter will fill the air.

Many will flood shopping malls without a single thought for anyone who has ever served our country.

These children will be forgotten in some minds.

So please. All I’m asking for you is to take a moment.

Remember them. Keep our boys in your heart.

For they were more courageous than most of us could ever be.

 

Don’t forget.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQkBeOisNM0