USA Patriotism! ... "Showcasing Pride of America"USA Store! ... American / Patriotic themed gift products at USA Patriotism!

Home - Articles - USA's Birth - Great Patriots - Heroes - Honor Halls - Music - Photos
Poems - Quotes - Reference - Speeches - Stars for Troops - Stories - Student Patriots
Videos - New Content
- About - Contact - Submit - Press
- CureNow - Donate
- Privacy

Click Here To Google Search
 For USA Patriotism! Content
USA Patriotism! YouTube Channel Join / Like the USA Patriotism! Facebook pagePinterestLinkedInUSA Patriotism! Instagram ChannelUSA Patriotism! On TwitterUSA Patriotism! at Flickr

Patriotic Poems
Troops & Veterans

Patritoic USA and Military Gifts from The Bradford Exchange Tough Tex USA Flag
 
Collectibles, apparel, and other gifts ... for Marines, Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, and veterans!  
 

Contributor: Thurman P. Woodfork || Poem Categories

Homecoming Festival country as flag
I have witnessed festivals all over the world
From the Bulls of Pamplona to the glittering swirl
Of the crowds in New Orleans on Mardi Gras Day.
And they all were impressive, each in its way.

But, by far the most impressive of all
Wasn't on a foreign plaza or the DC Mall.
It was the heartfelt joy of a dear old friend
Saying, "I'm glad you're safely home again."

But what of the men who will never see
Glad faces like the ones that welcomed me;
Men who for thirty long years and more
Have been locked behind their captors' doors?

There are some who'd rather turn away
And forget those men who were willing to pay
With their lives and their youth for democracy.
Weren't those men also fighting to stay free?

Observe the politicians who were never there
To fight for their country and really don't care
That some who did have never come home �
That they've been abandoned to suffer alone;

They speak of patriotism with puffed up chests
While surreptitiously feathering their nests.
Our forsaken men surely wonder why
Their country has callously left them to die.

Bleak yesterdays become hopeless tomorrows,
With nothing ahead but more days of sorrow,
What do they care about pageantry
And homecoming festivals across the sea?

So, shall we just sigh and let them be
A shameful footnote in our history?
By Thurman P. Woodfork
Copyright 2002 - Revised 2006
Listed February 1, 2011

About Author... Thurman P. Woodfork (Woody) spent his Air Force career as a radar repairman in places as disparate as Biloxi, Mississippi; Cut Bank, Montana; Tin City, Alaska; Rosas, Spain and Tay Ninh, Vietnam. In Vietnam, he was assigned to Detachment 7 of the 619th Tactical Control Squadron, a Forward Air Command Post located on Trai Trang Sup. Trang Sup was an Army Special Forces camp situated about fifty miles northwest of Saigon in Tay Ninh province, close to the Cambodian border. After Vietnam, Woody remained in the Air Force for nine more years.

Visit Thurman P. Woodfork's site for more information

It is illegal to use this poem without the author's permission.
~~ Send your comments and/or use permission request to
Thurman P. Woodfork. ~~

Poem Use Permission Request
USA Patriotism! cannot provide use permission for a poem or an author's email address if not listed below the poem. Only the author or a legal representative can grant permission. Try a search engine to find the author's contact information for a use permission request or if it is available for public use.
Note: Poems authored in the 1700s and 1800s can be used with reference to the author.

Comment on this poem

USA Gifts Store! ... over 1,000 American / Patriotic themed products at USA Patriotism! USA / Americana theme ... polo shirts, t-shirts, shorts, hats, caps, swimwear, sweatshirts, hoodies, hats, jackets, under garments, and other apparel items American Pride: Poems Honoring America and Her Patriots! by David G. Bancroft
Troops and Veterans Poems | Poem Categories