I now know why men who have been to war yearn
to reunite.
Not to tell stories or look at old pictures. Not to
laugh or weep.
Comrades gather because they long to be with the
men who once acted at their best:
Men who suffered and sacrificed, who were
stripped of their humanity.
I did not pick these men. They were delivered by
fate and the military.
But I know them in a way I know no other men. I
have never given anyone such trust.
They were willing to guard something more
precious than my life.
They would have carried my reputation, the
memory of me.
It was part of the bargain we all made, the reason
we were so willing to die for one another.
As long as I have my memory, I will think of them
all, every day.
I am sure that when I leave this world, my last
thought will be of
my family and my comrades …. Such good men.
Author unknown
