Musings of An Errant Scribe

The Best, The Noble, The Selfless

Posted on April 4, 2019November 20, 2023 by Tom 2 Comments

Stepping, strutting, a soldier’s stride
Chin up, chest out, dress right
Left foot beating the rhythm of our gait—
Swaggering oaks, we boys wrapped in the raiment of manhood
Marching into history with bodies molded for this moment.

We crowed the cadence call in one voice,
Our hearing, all it would ever be,
We saw so clearly, or so we thought.

Feeling, a luxury we could not abide,
Victory tasted more bitter than we expected,
And fear smelled different now.

We were the best, the selfless, the noble—
Spending our youth
Sacrificing our innocence
Spilling our lives—
Offering ourselves up in the service of others.

This poem was inspired by the words of Fr. Jim Conroy at the 2018 Veterans’ Retreat at Whitehouse Retreat. “We were the best, the noble, the selfless. We offered ourselves up in the service of others.”

#poetryofwarseries

Author: Tom

Business owner, professional speaker, author, and salesman . . . Since 1981, Tom has traveled globally sharing his content-rich message of hope. Tom literally wrote the book on Value-Added Selling. Tom has a B.A. in Psychology from St. Louis University and an M.A. in Psychology from University of Missouri in St. Louis with a special emphasis in work motivation theory. He spent four years in the United States Army where he honed his leadership skills as a Drill Sergeant. Tom is a prolific writer and researcher. He is a recipient of the Northeast Business Editors Silver Award; author of fifteen books; and editorial contributor to several magazines. Tom is an avid golfer, Harley-Davidson rider, and fountain pen collector. Please click here for Tom’s complete bio.