I Was Never Brave
written by: Brad Osborne
I did not set out to be brave
My intent was much more selfish
Just survive another day
And keep my brothers alive too
Not some lofty ideals of man
Just the desire for one more sunrise
For men who had surely earned it
In the fog of war, instinct prevails
You do simply what must be done
The repercussions that fatal loom
Bear no weight on a course of action
Fear serves no purpose here
But to bind the spirit and mind
A luxury unafforded and unknown
And if you are one of the lucky few
Who lives to see another day
Paying less a cost than those lost
They pin a medal on your chest
Awash in pleasant praise
But you can only think of your brothers
Another hole dug in Arlington
It is not pride you feel
Nor do you see yourself as brave
Anyone of us would do the same
If anything, you feel some blame
For the loss of beloved sons
Men of great honor and fidelity
Draped in the colors you serve
I was never brave
I was simply keeping a promise
One made silently in private times
To pairs of eyes that had seen war too
An unspoken oath given in a look
A promise to do whatever it took
To share another sunrise
So, the medals sit in a forgotten place
Next to the dog tags of friends I miss
And the citations speak of bravery
Above and beyond, a subjective phrase
Of these men that I called brothers
I was the least brave of them all
And yet you chose to honor me
Maybe in years to come
They will mean more to someone else
But they mean little to me now
The weight on my heart
Does not come from the pretty ribbons
It comes from this sunrise now
And the thought of those long gone
- Unafraid of the Dark - April 8, 2024
- Poetic Injustice - December 8, 2023
- I Was Never Brave - August 15, 2023
