[Shadowdancer21b]

The Boys who Bleed for You


My mother wept the day I signed my name. My heart swelled when I raised my right hand. Against all enemies I swore. God help me. Some of us never need to shave; Doughboys to the bone. Minutemen are we; always ready. Essayons! Semper Tentare! Do you know, we are all numbers, but we all have names. Every mother's son of us is ready to bleed and die for your sake. It is our fight that allows you to burn the flag you're holding. That flag is dyed with the blood of patriots and may it ever be so. I would have it no other way. To show the world. The brother in my foxhole never kissed a girl, never drank a beer, and he's ready too. We all stand. We are true. Our families know; we are the boys who bleed for you.

My father told me he was proud, even as I saw the shores of Grenada in his eyes. He turned away so I would not see that salty wave crash down his cheeks. He sent me on my way, with three old men behind him, behind me. The chain has not broken, five generations strong. the boys who bleed for you. We all have names; please don't forget us.