We Few!

“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;”

For they that fight and suffer for just causes

They are our brothers, and we hold no one higher.

Our bonds were forged in the heat of battle

We were baptized in the struggle by fury and fire.

Be their fate err so marvelous or be it so vile,

They shall ever be recalled with abiding affection;

Let none besmirch their honor or deny their claim

What they earned is worth more than fortune;

And far more durable than fame.

Some who shied away from this dubious war,

Did so, not on principle, but due to fear

Protesters had honor; but not so the craven curs.

They made no stand and spoke not one doubt,

But merely sulked in the shade of bone spurs!

From the moments of our varied tribulation

Until the death of the last among us

Let us make sure it can be honestly said

Neither torment nor torturous trauma

Kept us from living well until we were dead.

The petulant and petty both prominent and obscure

All of us know beyond doubt,

Will be callous and vindictive to the absolute last

But in the hearts of all good patriots and true

The flag will long fly respectfully at half-mast! 

Though some have smeared many you

And dismissed your numerous good deeds

Not one of you thought patriotism was a game.

You were firm while they were weak sneaks

Your abiding legacy these waffling weaklings cannot fame.  

So, my brothers in protest and my brothers in arms,

Rest peacefully now; you are beyond pain

We will carry on with the glorious quest

Remembering your bravery and applauding your worth

As you finally go on to your well-deserved rest!

Larry Conley