We took their oath
They signed our sentence
Now we're lined up on the border
Like sheep being led to our slaughter
The thump of the mortars
and tracers in the sky
Welcome to Iraq
It's the 4th of July
Everything we touch with our weapons of mass-distraction
Covered in poison dust, destroyed beyond recognition
The sands are shifting and the rivers are running dry
The children are thirsty but too dehydrated to cry
A year at war
A lifetime defined
History is written
But time passes us by
I wish I wasn't a veteran
Stuck in the past
They tell me to move on
But the memories last
I just want to sleep again
Feel like a human again
Returning to a home that will never be home again
I never thought I'd write another poem again
