”Did you know anyone on this wall?” She asked
"I knew them all” I said
"The kid from Boise, whose helmet was too big
the guy whose pants didn't fit
and the one whose feet hurt
'cause his boots were too small
I knew the gunny guy from Cleveland
and the bouncer from Detroit
"We had a guy we called 'Head'
he ate with his fingers
and had a head as big as a baskeball
"They weren't the Hollywood pretenders
like Charlie Sheen or Tom Cruise
These were men who had walked the walk
Some were heroes and some were cowards
but they were all there
Some were wounded
and some died
Others were POW/MIA
and some came home
"They were from every walk of life
and every color
Some were bright
and some were dirt dumb
"They worked in offices
on ships and firebaces
They fought from the Delta to the DMZ
"They were brave and scared
and they laughed and cried
"They were nurses and doctors
who patched us up and we went out again
"They were the best people I'd ever met in my life
"Did I know them all?
I knew they all
And so did you"