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| Jacob George (photo: Healing Path Expo) |
A shock wave is crashing around numerous circles of friends and acquaintances on Facebook and elsewhere. Jacob David George, an Army veteran who survived three deployments in Afghanistan, has died. The buzz among fellow vets is he died of let's say a broken heart.
At a meeting last month in Washington of peace activist military
families and veterans with White House staff members, I read a poem to convey a
message many veterans would like President Obama to hear and act on. The poem,
“Support the Troops,” was written by Jacob George.
“we just Need to
support the troops"
is what they tell me
well, this is from a troop
so listen carefully
what we Need are teachers who understand the history of this country
what we Need is a decent living wage, so people ain’t cold and hungry
what we Need is bicycle infrastructure spanning this beauteous nation
what we Need are more trees and less play stations
what we Need is a justice system that seeks the truth
what we Need are more books and less boots
what we Need is love
for every woman and man
from southern Louisiana
to the mountains of Afghanistan
Now, it's true
The troops need support
the support to come home
they need treatment and jobs
is what they tell me
well, this is from a troop
so listen carefully
what we Need are teachers who understand the history of this country
what we Need is a decent living wage, so people ain’t cold and hungry
what we Need is bicycle infrastructure spanning this beauteous nation
what we Need are more trees and less play stations
what we Need is a justice system that seeks the truth
what we Need are more books and less boots
what we Need is love
for every woman and man
from southern Louisiana
to the mountains of Afghanistan
Now, it's true
The troops need support
the support to come home
they need treatment and jobs
and love for the soul
see,
war ain't no good
for the human condition
I lost a piece of who I was
on every single mission
and I'm tellin’ you,
don't thank me for what I've done
give me a big hug
and let me know
we're not gonna let this happen again
because we support the troops
and we're gonna bring these wars to an end
see,
war ain't no good
for the human condition
I lost a piece of who I was
on every single mission
and I'm tellin’ you,
don't thank me for what I've done
give me a big hug
and let me know
we're not gonna let this happen again
because we support the troops
and we're gonna bring these wars to an end
Jacob’s poem appeared in After
Action Review, a collection of writings by vets published by Warrior
Writers in 2011. He also transformed it into a song that he traveled around the
country singing to the thumping strings of a banjo. With other vets, he did
cross-country bicycle rides for peace. He liked to call himself “a bicycle
ridin, banjo pickin, peace rambling hillbilly from Ouachita Mountains of
Arkansas.”
A selection of Jacob George’s songs, from a collection
called “Soldier’s Heart,” that he performed with a country band in Arkansas in 2013, was
recorded in “Support Your Troops: A Special Report”:
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1 comment:
Wage Peace.
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