He was a soldier far from home:
A stranger in a strange land.
He took a moment from his duties
To caress a kitten with his hand.
A brief, warm, glimpse of the past...
How he needed that small touch;
Recalling sweet memories of a land far away:
People and things that he loved so much.
Though fresh and newly inducted,
He was a brave, stalwart young man;
Determined to defend a cause,
And do his duty for Uncle Sam.
But his eyes contained the knowledge:
He could lose everything he had known...
He knew he'd be seeing a lot of Hell
Before, if lucky, returning Home.
A. K. Garrigus
July 7, 2004
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