We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Paul O - The Veteran

from Street Justice by A novel by Mark L Berry

/
  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $0.75 USD  or more

     

about

Companion Song: Street Justice
Chapter 32

lyrics

The Veteran - lyrics


The movie ends
I part with friends
I head back to my familiar street
And reheat leftovers to eat
I brush my teeth then wash my face
And look around my familiar place

The pictures hang upon the walls
In every room and down the halls
Old friends long gone since the war
I retreat to my room and close the door

It’s getting late so I close my eyes
But flashbacks come full of those other guys
They are gone and I am here
And they continue to whisper in my ear

New movies roll but they’re less fun
I’m back on patrol with my M-1
It’s been years since I carried a gun
But I still remember how it’s done

The flash comes first, followed by a deafening burst
We hope for the best but prepare for the worst
Our return fire follows; it’s the sound of Hell
And our hand-dug trench fills with a smoky gunpowder smell

Half awake, I call out half a dozen names
But no reply comes from those picture frames
Patches of green and black and tan
Blur the silhouette of every man

But fragging bombs don’t need to see
Nor do other forms of artillery
They cut indiscriminately into the night
While we try to aim and return the fight

In the morning light I’ll see
What I did to you and you tried to do to me
Silence seems to swallow the day
At least in contrast, it seems that way

The earth tones worn by so many dead
Reveal too many shades of red
The brightness of the blood that’s new
Drips over dry, flaking blood with a darker hue

Instead of my gun, I aim my lens
At those who once were my friends
I silently vow not to forget
And to this day I haven’t yet

But my alarm clock rings and I struggle to wake
I toss and turn, I shiver and shake
I’ll be late again and my boss will yell
He’s never had to live through Hell

I’m back in these United States
And I carry with me so many friends’ fates
My days are pretty normal now
It’s the nights I have to survive somehow

credits

from Street Justice, track released September 28, 2013
Words by Mark L Berry
Music by Paul O
Performed by Paul O

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Literary Companion Songs Missouri

Mark’s an airline pilot with an MFA from Fairfield University, author of a memoir and two novels, contributing editor for Airways magazine, and former managing editor for Mason's Road literary journal. His work has also appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and newspapers. He lives in St. Louis, MO near the big staple in the middle of the USA map. Locals call it: The Arch. ... more

contact / help

Contact Literary Companion Songs

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

If you like The Veteran, you may also like: