I’ve never been a soldier
But every one I know
Tells me of the weight they carry
Every place they go
It never can be jettisoned
Never set aside
Because the burden that they bear
Is everywhere inside
The wounding is invisible
The unseen scars go deep
They wait around a corner
They wake them from their sleep
Sent to serve their country
In a cold and distant land
Changed by what they see
In ways we cannot understand
So every time a war begins
I pray it will be brief
A minimum of sorrow
A minimum of grief
That soldiers will be shielded
From every threat they face
That airmen do their mission
And then return to base
Objectives are accomplished
All deployments short
Every ship that sets to sea
Will soon come back to port
But I also pray for veterans
Who wake up in the night
For every battle fought today
Is one that they still fight