I Owe...

I Owe...

By James N. Zitzelsberger

I owe, I owe,

To more soldiers than I will ever know

For this beautiful country they've given to me:

A land of the people, a land of the free.

From Bunker Hill to the Battle of Bull Run,

And deep in the trenches of World War I,

They went on to Anzio, New Guinea and, later, Inchon

Before crawling through the jungles of South Vietnam

Only to ride in a Humvee across the sands of Iraq

Amid the IED's that sent so many back

Without arms or legs, eyes or ears,

And promising lifetimes whittled to tears.

I owe, I owe, for the names on the wall

And every unknown, never named at all;

I owe for the liberty they have secured,

Bequeathed to me by what they endured.

I owe them for the freedom of speech,

Justice and the right to keep guns in reach;

I owe them for what they have given to me

In giving their lives so I can live free!

I owe, I owe....

Written for the

Memorial Day Observance

Sherwood, WI

May 30, 2016

© 2016 by James N. Zitzelsberger