A friend of mine that is in the military sent me a link recently to a music video by Big & Rich, called “8th of November”. Here are the lyrics to this song…
Said goodbye to his mamma
As he left South Dakota
To fight for the Red, White, and Blue.
He was nineteen and green with a new M-16
Just doing what he had to do.
He was dropped in the jungle
Where the choppers would rumble
With the smell of napalm in the air.
And the sergeant said, "Look up ahead"
Like a dark, evil cloud
1,200 came down
on him and 29 more.
They fought for their lives
But most of them died
In the 173rd Airborne.
On the 8th of November,
The angels were crying
As they carried his brothers away.
With the fire raining down
And the Hell all around
There were few men left standing that day.
Saw the eagle fly,
Through a clear, blue sky
1965, the 8th of November.
Now he's fifty-eight
And his ponytail's grey
But the battle still plays in his head.
He limps when he walks,
But he's strong when he talks
About the shrapnel they left in his leg.
He puts on a grey suit
Over his Airborne tattoo
And He ties it on one time a year
And remembers the fallen,
As he orders a tall one
And swallows it down with his tears.
On the 8th of November,
The angels were crying
As they carried his brothers away.
With the fire raining down
And the Hell all around
There were few men left standing that day.
Saw the eagle fly,
Through a clear, blue sky
1965, the 8th of November.
As he left South Dakota
To fight for the Red, White, and Blue.
He was nineteen and green with a new M-16
Just doing what he had to do.
He was dropped in the jungle
Where the choppers would rumble
With the smell of napalm in the air.
And the sergeant said, "Look up ahead"
Like a dark, evil cloud
1,200 came down
on him and 29 more.
They fought for their lives
But most of them died
In the 173rd Airborne.
On the 8th of November,
The angels were crying
As they carried his brothers away.
With the fire raining down
And the Hell all around
There were few men left standing that day.
Saw the eagle fly,
Through a clear, blue sky
1965, the 8th of November.
Now he's fifty-eight
And his ponytail's grey
But the battle still plays in his head.
He limps when he walks,
But he's strong when he talks
About the shrapnel they left in his leg.
He puts on a grey suit
Over his Airborne tattoo
And He ties it on one time a year
And remembers the fallen,
As he orders a tall one
And swallows it down with his tears.
On the 8th of November,
The angels were crying
As they carried his brothers away.
With the fire raining down
And the Hell all around
There were few men left standing that day.
Saw the eagle fly,
Through a clear, blue sky
1965, the 8th of November.
As I sat watching the video, I quickly realized how much I take life for granted. I thought about what it would be like to be a soldier during the times of World War I, World War II, Vietnam War, etc.
As the music video goes on, it shows clips of missiles attacking the soldiers and many of them emerging from the attack severely wounded. I tried to think about what they could possibly be thinking in that moment, wondering if they would make it out alive.
I thought about their families, back in America, hanging on to every news report announcing soldier deaths and praying that their loved ones names weren’t on that list.
For those fortunate ones that lived through these wars, I thought about how their lives must have changed forever…the constant nightmares they must have, of being shot at, of seeing your close friends being blown up by a bomb as they hovered down in coverage next to you.
But the thing is, many of these men went to this war without a second thought. They wanted to protect their country, to serve in ways that we cannot even fathom. GK Chesterton once said, “Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die.”
These men were courageous.
These men were brave.
These men will forever be my heroes and I will forever be grateful for their sacrifices.
As we approach Veterans Day on Friday, I encourage you to think of these lyrics, these men (and women) that are willing to risk their lives daily so that we may relax in our comfortable homes and watch the latest TV show that’s on, of the sacrifices they have given us, and the dedication they have to this country…and I encourage you to be overwhelmed with gratitude for this courage.
(Here’s the link just in case you want to watch the video for yourself…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozpdBvB0hek&ob=av3n)
(Here’s the link just in case you want to watch the video for yourself…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozpdBvB0hek&ob=av3n)
