When I was young, before I learned to shave A handsome soldier the girls thought brave
The world at my feet threw garlands of flowers And cheered me along from bright shining towers
My uniform was new, my bayonet was sharp I could barely hear the heavenly harp
Or the angelic weeping somewhere far behind A reminder way down in the back of my mind
Of past wars forgotten And corpses gone rotten
In that place where black lips and blue sky meet
Now, I remember how the reaper kissed the lips of my rival And turned to touch my forehead with the curse of survival
Now, I sit by the roadside and beg for my dinner And ask myself daily, just who was the winner?
Now, my face is bearded and my uniform is tattered And young girls hurry by as if I never really mattered
No more cheers do I hear in these ragged old ears And there's no fine young bravery to cover my fears
While I wait for a dollar, or deliverance, or death To return with a kiss that will take my last breath
And finally free me from this curse of survival To reunite me with my long departed--dear--rival
In that place where black lips and blue sky meet
Jim Bush is a 61 year old, Vietnam-era veteran, currently living in Katy,Texas. He was raised in a military family. His father received the Silver Star for directing troops while under air attack at Clark Field in the Phillipines, survived the Bataan Death March, and spent three and a half years in a Japanese POW camp. He also received the Purple Heart for wounds received while a POW. Jim served as an army photographer in Okinawa and Korea. In 1987 he traveled to the war zones of Nicaragua with a veteran's group dedicated to stopping the Contra War.
