Poem "The Last Veteran"

The Last Veteran

He was silent, stately, and somber as he stood watch over the tomb;

his once bright rifle turned burnt umber by endless hours of wind, sun, and storm.

He felt the tug of time upon his hero’s breast.  Gone was the shine of youth

and in its place hung wrinkled flesh; shaken with palsy, decayed and pale.

 

Duty was all that sustained him as long days pasted into unrelenting years.

His promise to be faithful to this solitary task; forsworn in an oath made upon blood,

was the recompense he granted the fallen, in obedience for the relinquishment life.

He was proud to stand the watch on ground made hallowed by the lost.

 

The echo of his footsteps growing faint by fatigue repeats against the graying stone,

which once gleamed white like snow and glimmered in the sunlight.

The soiled russet carpet ripped  and worn threadbare by his erratic tread

a poor vestige of its former glory marks the margins of his endless journey.

 

The sordid sight of decay upon the scene, brings tears to dimming eyes,

forgotten without a future, in reverence yet he strides.

There are no other veterans to replace him but he courageously struggles on,

till soon he sleeps forever and the legacy of such fidelity and honor

become a glorious myth of ancient days long gone.

 

Written by Mark R. Day on 11-5-12, Copyright by Mark R. Day 11-5-12 all rights reserved

Background for the poem. The idea for this poem came out of a conversation between myself and a fellow teacher.  The teacher and I were talking about the upcoming Veterans Day and she expressed sadness over the fact there were so few veterans at our school.  This made me think about the fact that only 1% of the population will be veterans in the future and I wondered what the future might hold for veterans.  This poem is about the last veteran and his devotion to guarding the tomb of the unknowns.