Lost Dreams (The Vietnam Vet)

by Dennis Fillhart
(Butler, Pa)

I didn't want to go
But I had to, you know
I was snatched from "cruisin' the strip" time
While it was still in it's prime

While old friends listened to "Good Golly Miss Molly"
I was sent after a poor guy named "Charlie"
I didn't know why, it was his homeland
Not like it was serious crude under sand

I toured the 'Nam in '68
Confused and, thank God, not full of hate
I hoped I would get back without pain
And while there, I found 21 in the rain

I was taught not to run away
When it's time to pay
And the price of freedom I should enjoy today
Was the sacrifice of my youthful days

Adrift without a prayer
And shattered by inhuman care
You found me lost in '71's scene
Dragin' behind me shreds of what was once a dream

Written in 1995