Arlington by US Army Spc. Rob Lauer

Arlington

As I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of death

So Cold, I see no Life, No Love, only my breath

*

I walk off the beaten path

Away from all the tourists and their laughs

*

Gravestones standing in formation in a line

Just as soldiers once did so fine

*

Memories of Wars long ago

And of armies on the go

*

The end of so many lives all around

With room for more to fill the ground

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Such an honored place

With all those names without a face

*

Sons and fathers never forgot

With their loss great pain was brought

*

For the ages here they will lie

The same place a grateful nation said good bye

*

Forever we shall remember the sacrifice they made

So you and I could live in peace and never be afraid

*

By US Army Spc. Rob Lauer

I wrote this in 2005 while on a winter trip to Washington D.C after I had just completed Army Basic training.