"Pride"

By,

Jeffrey Rodgers

Do you even care
About the price I pay
The sleepless nights
The tired days

Do you understand
The pain in my heart
Living with the memories
Of the families I tore apart

You point and laugh
When a Soldier cries
I bow my head
For his Soldier who died

It's not for you
That we fight and die
Not for our country
Our flag, or our pride

We fight to free
Those oppressed
We fight for our lives
And we do our best

But this is war
And soldiers die
That doesn't mean we quit
We fight harder, we survive

Until I die
I'll walk with pride
My head held high
For my brother's who died

So walk away
Bow your head
Show respect
Give thanks to our dead

If it wasn't for them
You wouldn't be free
To do what you want to do
Or be who you want to be

A humbled apology
We're waiting to hear
Because of our Soldiers
You have nothing to fear

"Why We Fight"

By,

Jeffrey Rodgers

You don't care
That we fight and die
You don't have to hear
Our wounded Soldiers Cry

As a Soldier
We'll give our lives
So people like you
May walk the line

You tell us we're no good
You hope we die
Soon enough you'll be thanking me
From the other side

It's people like you
Who gives us reason to fight
In most places, with your opinion
You'd have already died

So everytime you try
To hurt a Soldier's pride
Just remember it was us
Who gave you that right...

Jeffrey Allen Rodgers

Copyright ©2007  Jeffrey Allen Rodgers

"Soldier's Goodbye"

By,

Jeffrey Rodgers

Bullets were flying
All around
No time to duck
As I hit the ground

The blood was flowing
Don't ask why
But I wasn't fighting for my life
I wanted to die

No reason to live
No family back home
Better to die here
Than home alone

Stressin' fro home
More than here
The thought of dying
Suppresses the fears

So, when I die
Shed no tears
Know I died with honor
And showed no fear

Through my death
I'll save a life
Helping another Soldier
Return to his faithful wife

Though I've died
I'm not alone
I'm with my Brothers
They'll carry me home

Although I'm being
Put to rest
Please don't cry
For I did my best

I did not go easy
It was a hell of a fight
My war is over now
This is my last night

I'll watch from above
I will not sleep
Til my Brothers come home
No combat boots on their feet

So, this is it
I'm saying good bye
I love you all
For this will be the last time I write

Jeffrey Allen Rodgers

Copyright ©2007  Jeffrey Allen Rodgers

PTSD

By,

Jeffrey Rodgers

My mind is trapped
Alone in the zone
Nobodies willing to help
A Soldier's mind get back home

The bullets were flying
But I made it home
Two brothers left dead
In the combat zone

Tears I cry
Almost everynight
Hiding in my pillow
Holding it so very tight

Praying I make it home
From the nightly fight
As I'm dreaming of my brothers
Caught in Afgani gun sights

I see them each night
Everytime I close my eyes
My brothers in arms
Who proudly gave their lives

Screams from the wounded
Silence of the dead
Those are what haunt me
What I can't get out of my head

My body's phycally home
My mind's still in the combat zone
Searching for some place to hide
Having no place to go

Holding my fallen friend
Blood seeping from his chest
He died to save my life
I'm thankful he did his best

They tell me I'm okay
It's all just in my head
They don't know the things I've done
They don't know how many I've left dead

I took fathers and sons
I took husbands and wives
Everynight I ask myself why
Why I took so many lives

They say I saved my men
We lost no friendly lives
The only thing that they can't see
Is that I'm dead inside...

Jeffrey Allen Rodgers

Copyright ©2007  Jeffrey Allen Rodgers