Poems by Jodi M. Kucera

A man walked up to me some time ago.
He had a story he wanted me to know.

He reached out his hand to shake mine,
And it took me back to a place and time.

He told me he was a soldier in World War II,
A POW in Moosburg; sad but true.

As he began to tell the story, I could see in his eyes,
He'd gone back to that place in his mind.

He said "110,000 men walked through those gates.
The Nazis were filled with nothing but hate.

The camp was thronged
And we knew our stay there would be long.

The floor was hard and the nights were cold.
Young men grew malnourished and old.

They must have feared me because I was put in a cage,
And all I could do was pray.

I cannot tell you how many days I was there,
Only that every day I said the same prayer.

I asked the Lord to send someone our way,
to get us out of there and take us far away.

On April 25,1945,
He sent someone just when I was ready to give up and die.

The Fourteenth Armored Division came crashing through.
It was The Liberators, with a job to do.

They were there to set us free!"
And with a smile he said, "Everyone erupted with glee.

A soldier came running my way,
And he reached down and opened my cage.

After all these years I never forgot that man's face or what he did for me.
My only regret, I didn't get to thank him when I got up from bended knee.

Now he's standing in front of me shaking my hand.
So thank you sir, because you were that man."

No presents bought, no candles blown; this year you walk on streets of gold,
And it's so much more than the stories you've been told.

The sun is shining on your face,
and you're standing in all of God's good grace.

There were people there to meet you at that pearly gate.
Promise for me there too you will wait.

The angels no longer sing from up above;
but hand in hand together, you sing about God's love.

No more pain, no more strife,
but the gift of eternal life.

The sufferings of this world are left behind.
You made your mark; your life was not left undefined.

You told people of your Savior's love and how he died for you and me
so we could spend our time praising him for all eternity.

Someday we'll meet again,
for time is just a vapor in the wind.

But until that day comes, I will miss you every day.
I just wanted to wish you a happy heavenly birthday.

We have an understanding, you and I.
We sit in silence; nothing needs to be said.

I know the weight you carry.
You hold your head high, but inside you cry.

The life of a soldier is not an easy one.

Memories haunt you!
But you stand tall and show no fear.

The life of a soldier is not an easy one.

You hear voices of days past come rushing to your head.
You think to yourself, "He was a good one; why is he dead?"

You wonder if you should have done things differently.
No time to think, only react.

The life of a soldier is not an easy one.

The guilt is too much to bear.
Although you were wounded, you question,

"Why him and not me?"
You can't forget the faces that were there.

The life of a soldier is not an easy one.

We have an understanding, you and I.
You're a soldier for life; and it has not been an easy one.