THE OTHER THINGS WE CARRY by Ron Leonard
		The Other Things We Carry Ron Leonard It's been 35 years since a Huey's whine And midnight missions in the nick of time It's been 35 years since a claymore mine And ground attacks so clear in our mind. And only yesterday it was 69 We carried Ammo, and Rockets, and beer, and mail We carried body bags that would make you wail We carried friends in our arms, as we turned pale We carried buckets of water to wash out blood stale We carried medals of valor for feats unbelieved We carried purple hearts for wounds we received But most of all we carried each other Today we carry other things, some real, some imagined We carry cancer of every kind known to man Agent Orange poisoning, and malaria, and Lymphomia, and Diabetes, and Hepatitis C, And many still have PTSD. We carry arms with no hands, and legs with no feet, and scars both mental and real. We carry crutches and walkers, and wheelchairs and canes, with honor its no big deal. We carry horror stories of the Veterans Administration, of six months waits, and lack of funds, and shoddy care, of indifferent employees, and crummy food, and broken promises and downright lies. But we still carry each other