Re: Twas the night before Christmas...military version

[skid vicious]

cut and pasted from a guy over on SH.ORG

I took the pictures from a CD that my unit put together when we got back from Afghanistan. (and yes I put this poem up last year, just no pictures) Enjoy...

'Twas The Night Before Christmas,
He Lived All Alone,
In A One Bedroom House
Made Of Plaster And Stone.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/AFEG102.jpg

I Had Come Down The Chimney
With Presents To Give,
And To See Just Who
In This Home Did Live.

I Looked All About,
A Strange Sight I Did See,
No Tinsel, No Presents,
Not Even A Tree.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/afer6-15.jpg

No Stocking By Mantle,
Just Boots Filled With Sand,
On The Wall Hung Pictures
Of Far Distant Lands.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/Locator.jpg

With Medals And Badges,
Awards Of All Kinds,
A Sober Thought
Came Through My Mind.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/05DEC0103.jpg

For This House Was Different,
It Was Dark And Dreary,
I Found The Home Of A Soldier,
Once I Could See Clearly.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/30NOV0107.jpg

The Soldier Lay Sleeping,
Silent, Alone,
Curled Up On The Floor
In This One Bedroom Home.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/AFER07.jpg

The Face Was So Gentle,
The Room In Such Disorder,
Not How I Pictured
A United States Soldier.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/HomeAgain.jpg

Was This The Hero
Of Whom I'd Just Read?
Curled Up On A Poncho,
The Floor For A Bed?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/011016-M-4912C-015.jpg

I Realized The Families
That I Saw This Night,
Owed Their Lives To These Soldiers
Who Were Willing To Fight.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/Dec.jpg

Soon Round The World,
The Children Would Play,
And Grownups Would Celebrate
A Bright Christmas Day.

They All Enjoyed Freedom
Each Month Of The Year,
Because Of The Soldiers,
Like The One Sitting Here.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/AFER2-25.jpg

I Couldn't Help Wonder
How Many Lay Alone,
On A Cold Christmas Eve
In A Land Far From Home.

The Very Thought
Brought A Tear To My Eye,
I Dropped To My Knees
And Started To Cry.

The Soldier Awakened
And I Heard A Rough Voice,
"Santa Don't Cry,
This Life Is My Choice;

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/DSCF0099.jpg

I Fight For Freedom,
I Don't Ask For More,
My Life Is My God,
My Country, My Corps."

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/MTs122601rcChenellyCork08.jpg

The Soldier Rolled Over
And Drifted To Sleep,
I Couldn't Control It,
I Continued To Weep.

I Kept Watch For Hours,
So Silent And Still
And We Both Shivered
From The Cold Night's Chill.

I Didn't Want To Leave
On That Cold, Dark, Night,
This Guardian Of Honor
So Willing To Fight.

Then The Soldier Rolled Over,
With A Voice Soft And Pure,
Whispered, "Carry On Santa,
It's Christmas Day, All Is Secure."

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v177/busa413/afeg104a.jpg

One Look At My Watch,
And I Knew He Was Right.
"Merry Christmas My Friend,
And To All A Good Night."

This poem was written by a Marine (Name Unkown) stationed in Okinawa, Japan

[jcblitz]

http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/soldier.asp

[High_Revs_17]

Nice post Kurt. :biggthump

[PitsVtec]

I agree...nice post...I wish them all Happier Holidays!

[benellis]

right on! Sometimes when I think my job is hard, I think of those guys, many of them my friends and classmates, we were all army brats, I was lucky enough to go to college after high school.

[Taz]

Awesome post. :biggthump We can't forget those guys.