Toughest Assignment

He looked at his orders and left out a long sigh Raised his eyes to the clouds and asked, "Why, God, Why?" The toughest assignment of a long career A message to be taken to a family held dear. He arrived at the station and began his walk down the street There was a feeling of anguish he could not defeat He found the home he was looking for Took a deep breath and walked to the door The man's face became filled with fear He knew in his heart why the soldier was here. As he delivered the message that their only son had died "Oh no, not my baby, not my baby," the young mother cried. There was a look of despair in the father's sad eyes And undeniable grief in the young mother's cries Their son had been butchered, not killed in the field There would be no viewing, the casket was sealed. We will not retaliate as the lone church bell tolls Our leaders don't want to look bad in the polls There is a feeling of anger that through my body runs As politicians sharpen their image with the blood of our sons. At night, alone, he feels the tears fill his eyes The soldier is haunted by the young mother's cries The war rages on and he answers the call The battle continues and more soldiers fall. We are in another Vietnam but this time it is not the war splitting the country. It is the apathy of the American people. We need to care. We need to recapture our patriotism and pride. We are watching our children die while the administration bows down and worships the oil companies. We watch as people continually violate our rights by abusing the first amendment. We are fighting a war for five years that should have lasted five weeks. I'll fight to defend my country, but I'll be damned if I'll fight so Shell and Exxon can get their hands on Iraqi oil.