From my newest e-friend, Bob Prinselaar. This isn't the only one he sent but I'll keep you waiting for the others.

MEDALS
Bob Prinselaar

Don’t envy a man his medals
All those ribbons on his chest
He did not try to get them
They’re not there at his request

They were earned in stinking hell holes
Where no man would like to go
Or in cold and wintry places
Where there’s only ice and snow

He did not know he earned them
Till they were awarded at parade
And they were bright when he first got them
But in time the colors fade

He was told he had to wear them
And to wear them all with pride
But when the memories come to haunt him
Those same medals make him hide

Cause those medals will not bring back
All those guys he left behind
And he would trade them all forever
For a little peace of mind

So don’t envy a man his medals
You don’t want to take his place
Thinking back to long gone battles
And meeting dead friends face to face   

Contributed by Bill Faith on February 9, 2007 at 12:37 AM in Bob Prinselaar, Poetry | Permalink

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