Just 5 years old - Knew you had to leave but didn’t know why
You’re the man of the house now, you looked me in my eyes
You hugged me and kissed me goodbye
Watched you get on that plane, tears down my face

We’d call you every night just to hear your voice
Mommy told you we were starting school - She said you were proud of us
It was Christmas then and over a year since we last saw you
You brought back some news and said New Hampshire didn’t need you

It’s been a few years now with you home and I’m off to middle school
And with a new school you brought a heartbreak
Iraq needed you, but this just isn’t cool - Don’t leave me again, please not like this
Just promise me you’ll be safe, one last kiss

Back and forth you’d travel every year - But the news you brought back had brought me to tears
Your shoulder was hurt and they said you won’t recover
But you’re retired now and home forever
Slowly you restored back to health, your shoulder was well

Flash back to a year ago in our brand-new house with a brand-new garage
You look me in my eyes and tell me you have to go back
“We’re losing money, Kenny. They stopped paying disability”
I had to look away, be a big kid I thought, men don’t cry
But you tell me you can’t go, no not again - Your children need you and your helping hand

This has gone nowhere and you’ve probably learned nothing
But I had to write, and I had to write something
To you these are just words but to me there’s a memory.
Of a soldier, a father and a best friend to his family.
I love you, Dad. - Thank you.