|
Names on the Wall |
 |
|
On a long black wall called the Vietnam Memorial
Are fifty-eight thousand plus names etched into the black
marble
Each name is a person who once was alive and well
With names like Adam and Zachary, Alicia and Yolanda
Sometimes it is called the Healing Wall
Hundreds come per day to look to pray, to cry
To find a name they knew that answered our nations call
Or find a father by a child or young adult he never saw
Visitors are quiet as they look at the names on the wall
Some have tears as they try to hold back an expression of
grief
For each Nam vet sees a name they knew well, a hooch mate
maybe
Each name is special to a relative or a buddy in someone's
arms as he died
A piece of paper and a pencil so they can rub a name they
see
American flags lean against the panels to honor these fallen
Americans
Photos in frames show a loved one with an unsent letter
against the wall
Red and yellow roses and an old pair of jungle boots sit
among these tributes
Fragments of bone, a faded ID card may change status
Based on DNA, a symbol is placed next to a name from MIA to
KIA
Each name is an individual, a friend, a loved one, a buddy
Yes, each name on the wall is special |
By
Merrill Vaughan, Ret. USAF MSgt.
Veterans
Assistance Site
Copyright 2003
Listed April
9, 2009 |
|
