A poem by Elizabeth Tucker, age 14 years

The sun slowly sets over the stones,

As it gives them a golden hue,

So many stones marking the bones

Of the veterans from World War Two.

Stones engraved with years too short

Yes, the years, by far, too few

Because the men who lie in these graves

Were willing to give them for you.

Has our generation forgotten

What those brave souls were willing to do?

They fought and they died in most horrible ways,

To secure this freedom for you.

Could our nation muster the spirit

To raise the red, white and blue

And offer the last full measure of life

Like those boys in World War Two?

Or would we run to lands far away

As, you know, others did do,

Unwilling to fight, to do what is right

Like those heroes of World War Two.

They came in blue and khaki and white

To do what they had to do.

To fight without flight, to stand up for right

Those soldiers of World War Two.

Have you ever stopped one to thank him

For the freedom he purchased for you?

Have you ever considered, where you’d be today

If he hadn’t followed through.

So slowly their numbers dwindle,

Till now there are just a few,

So take the time while you still have the chance

To thank a veteran of World War Two.

*Editor’s Note: This poem is an excerpt from the Louisiana Legionnaire, August 2014 edition, an official publication of the American Legion, Department of Louisiana.