I AM A SOLDIER


I am a soldier. My blood permeates the soil of many countries.

I have gasped my last breath on many a desolate stretch of beach.
For you...all of you, the children who play in the parks, the mothers
who watch over them, the fathers who struggle to sustain them.

There are those here who have belittled and reviled me, who have
made a mockery of me and what I stand for. You, also, have I
suffered and died for. I withstood heat, insects and disease so the
right to dissent would be yours.

I endured the pain and terror of battle and the maiming of my body to
ensure that you might worship as you please. I died in agony in order
that you, no matter who or what you are, have the freedom
to choose your own destinies.

AND I WOULD DO IT AGAIN because I believe in the ideals that made
this country what it is today... FREE. I love her with a deep and
abiding love that transcends mere physical pain.

I AM A SOLDIER. Pray that I will always be there, for if I disappear
from this country, so will you.

~Anonymous~