A man – a brave man
His face bore the lines
And worries of
Eighty-four years
He saw a much different
World than me
He is a decorated
And true hero
The angel of death
Was no stranger
To his fallen comrades
And his fallen enemies
But he did what he had to
For he answered freely
His call to duty
Young and foolish
I longed to be a hero
And I questioned
This courageous soldier –
“What’s it like to be a hero?”
We sat in his cellar
As he quenched his thirst
With a drink of rye
And he flinched as the
Canada Day fireworks
Exploded
Then he sadly replied –
“Had there been another way,
I would have taken it.”
