| 
								 
								
								Pictures of Soldiers  | 
								
								  | 
							 
						   | 
				 
				
					
	When she died, 
	I held her close 
	and I tried to cry, 
	 
	... of anger, 
	held me 
	once again, 
	 
	... and I just held her 
	quietly, 
	as my family 
	gathered around 
	and shed tears. 
	 
	They passed the boxes of pictures 
	'round 
	and told of her love for each of us. 
	 
	One box held pictures of soldiers, 
	and a boy that had gone 
	far away 
	to a war 
	in Vietnam. 
	 
	I looked at his eyes, 
	and all the muscle and youth 
	and wondered who he was. 
	 
	I touched the photos 
	one by one, 
	and slowly I remembered 
	that once, so very long ago, 
	I was he, 
	and that he and I 
	... were one. 
	 
	Gently I touched her aged face, 
	and so gently, I said goodbye. 
	 
	Finally, 
	after all the years 
	I remembered me. 
	 
	... and finally 
	I cried. | 
				 
				
					By 
					Lou J. Klaiber 
					Copyright 2003 Listed 
					October 12, 2009 | 
					
					  | 
				 
			   |