Elegy at Dusk

Sunset fades slowly from the sky. Massive blocks of polished stone list the nation's slain. "The Wall" looms stark and grim. This monument to men who died.- So much pain Who were you till you left your home and how'd you come to fall? Were you thinking of loved ones, when a bullet found your heart? Were the "high ideals" of ambitious politicians understood? Did you die in the stinking jungle mud? Dead men's names knifed in stone. Husband, father, brother, son. Bitterness mixed with pride chokes family and survivors. From the shadows wafts a plaintive bugle call. Tribute to the victims of a tragic war. A forlorn wail of grief tugged from lost and lonely souls. Day is done. Gone the sun. Rest in peace.