... AND A WAKE-UP
perimeter duty
a time for reflection
stood my last
G.I. inspection
tomorrow a bird
will take me away
drank my last beer
with my buddies today
quiet tonight
nothing expected
rash on my arm
a little infected
blistered by rain
from a clear sky
small price to pay
I didn't die
in a couple more hours
I'll get on a bus
when one of us leaves
there's never a fuss
we've been relieved
I pick up my gun
I'll clean it once more
then my war is done
a hidden little lizard,
as I stepped outside,
in perfect English
bade me a profane good-bye
my thoughts now are home
my wife, Dad and Mom
it's been real, but.
good-night Viet Nam