He was getting old and paunchy<\/p>\n
And his hair was falling fast,<\/p>\n
And he sat around the Legion,<\/p>\n
Telling stories of the past.<\/p>\n
Of a war that he once fought in<\/p>\n
And the deeds that he had done,<\/p>\n
In his exploits with his buddies;<\/p>\n
They were heroes, every one.<\/p>\n
And ‘tho sometimes to his neighbors<\/p>\n
His tales became a joke,<\/p>\n
All his buddies listened quietly<\/p>\n
For they knew where of he spoke.<\/p>\n
But we’ll hear his tales no longer,<\/p>\n
For ole’ Joe has passed away,<\/p>\n
And the world’s a little poorer<\/p>\n
For a Veteran died today.<\/p>\n
He won’t be mourned by many,<\/p>\n
just his children and his wife.<\/p>\n
For he lived an ordinary,<\/p>\n
Very quiet sort of life.<\/p>\n
He held a job and raised a family,<\/p>\n
Going quietly on his way.<\/p>\n
And the world won’t note his passing,<\/p>\n
Though a Veteran died today.<\/p>\n
When politicians leave this earth,<\/p>\n
Their bodies lie in state,<\/p>\n
While thousands note their passing,<\/p>\n
And proclaim that they were great.<\/p>\n
Papers tell of their life stories<\/p>\n
From the time that they were young,<\/p>\n
But the passing of a Veteran<\/p>\n
Goes unnoticed, and unsung.<\/p>\n
Is the greatest contribution<\/p>\n
to the welfare of our land?<\/p>\n
Some jerk who breaks his promise<\/p>\n
And cons his fellow man?<\/p>\n
Or the ordinary fellow<\/p>\n
Who in times of war and strife,<\/p>\n
Goes off to serve his country<\/p>\n
And offers up his life?<\/p>\n
The politician’s stipend<\/p>\n
and the style in which he lives,<\/p>\n
Are often disproportionate,<\/p>\n
To the service that he gives.<\/p>\n
While the ordinary Veteran,<\/p>\n
Who offered up his all,<\/p>\n
Is paid off with a medal<\/p>\n
And perhaps a pension, small.<\/p>\n
It is not the politicians<\/p>\n
With their compromise and ploys,<\/p>\n
Who won for us the freedom<\/p>\n
That our country now enjoys.<\/p>\n
Should you find yourself in danger,<\/p>\n
With your enemies at hand,<\/p>\n
Would you really want some cop-out,<\/p>\n
With his ever-waffling stand?<\/p>\n
Or would you want a Veteran<\/p>\n
His home, his country, his kin,<\/p>\n
Just a common Veteran,<\/p>\n
Who would fight until the end.<\/p>\n
He was just a common Veteran,<\/p>\n
And his ranks are growing thin,<\/p>\n
But his presence should remind us<\/p>\n
We may need his likes again.<\/p>\n
For when countries are in conflict,<\/p>\n
We find the Veteran’s part,<\/p>\n
Is to clean up all the troubles<\/p>\n
That the politicians start.<\/p>\n
If we cannot do him honor<\/p>\n
While he’s here to hear the praise,<\/p>\n
Then at least let’s give him homage<\/p>\n
At the ending of his days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
He was getting old and paunchy And his hair was falling fast, And he sat around the Legion, Telling stories of the past. Of a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"\n