We linger on the side
Of this life that rushes by,
So much forgotten as it keeps moving
With or without us
We must stop and respect
All that has been
Through days that slip into shadow
Waiting on the full of the moon
To guide with light
As we step out from the side
And become one with it all.
We learn and honor
Stories of those who fought
While life kept on far away
We had never touched the sorrow
We had not felt the scent of the fire rising
As lands crumbled below the skies
We laughed in yards and lived our minutes
Oblivious.
Today we raise flags and remember the basic rule,
With respect and love for the wounded and often forgotten
That there should be every day set aside
To simply say a gentle thank you
For what I have now,
You have suffered
With memories of atrocities and violence,
And I of soft skin who never walked in your large shoes
Never tread the blood soaked soil of foreign lands,
Who remembers today
As we rise from the mist,
Strong sentinels who linger in beauty
Touching our senses
With the impermanence of this world,
As crumbling stones remain like a burial mound,
We say a prayer for healing
We salute the sacrifices
We humbly give thanks.