The shafts of stone lay row on row
And glow in the setting sun,
And for those that lay under the stones of gray,
Their duty is finally done.

The nation’s best are laid to rest,
Far from the roaring guns,
Warriors true and comrades too,
These daughters and these sons.

On Memorial Day we sit and pray
For the dead of each campaign
But America forgets the surviving vets,
Who live on with depression and pain.

What will become of the daughter or son,
Who survived the fury and fight,
And returned to the nest, but can never rest,
For they relive the war every night?

What of the man who has only one hand,
Or no legs, or no arms to give hugs?
Or the woman who’s blind or half out of her mind
Because she’s on so many drugs?

For many that survived and came back alive
Sadness is where joy used to be.
We have become emotionally numb,
The victims of PTSD.

We constantly deal with the anger we feel
And the frustration that never ends,
We work through the tears and depression and fears
By avoiding both family and friends.

We are hyper alert so no one will get hurt,
And are startled by noises and sounds,
And we don’t sleep at night or we’ll return to the fight
And the sounds of incoming rounds.

We have scars on our souls and our hearts have big holes
Where family and friends used to dwell.
We paid freedom's cost, yet many are still lost,
Reliving their time spent in hell.

We seek only peace, for the anger to cease;
And to forget what we have seen and been through.
But our country ignores the survivors of wars
And their families, who are victims too.

We came back from a war, and were pushed out the door,
Expecting us simply to cope
But without proper care, we don’t have a prayer,
So we languish without very much hope.

At our nation's call, our brothers gave all,
As did our sisters who fought by our side.
We had to ensure that our freedoms endure
To be passed on to our children with pride.

We that returned have certainly earned
The right to be healed and made whole,
We have given our sweat and our tears and our blood.
And many, gave even their soul.

Please help us get near to a life without fear
And to finally sleep the night through.
We don’t ask for much, just one loving touch,
And the medical help we are due.

So remember these women, remember these men,
And remember their families who mourn.
Remember your rights were saved in great fights,
And on whose shoulders those battles were born.