Dedicated to the mothers of lost sons

I have heard soldiers say

Today’s a good day to die

My eyes will never dry

No day is a good day

For a mother’s son to die

 

You were better than all of us

You were my beloved son

You were better than anyone

You were better than me

I never taught you to die for what’s right

 

The brave, scarred horde

Scattered hidden faces

Like shattered glass through the sand

You’re the pride of our hearts

We bleed when you bleed

 

Do you hear the prayers for you

The voices that sing your praise

We lost respect for our youth

Enforcing a belief no one believes

I lived to see the day I buried my only son

 

I wonder when you woke

Did you know, you’d never cross the line

Did you see it written in the sky

Or did you see it in your eyes

I wonder when you woke

 

Did you know, that night you would die

I’ll always wonder

Did you know

I wonder when you woke

Did you know, that night you would die

 

Did you stare at the stars

Scattered in that distant sky

Did you feel alone

You were never

A single beat away from my heart

 

You’ll never be

A single beat away from my heart

A Note from the author:

I wrote A Single Beat Away from My Heart about a mother that was remembering her lost son.

Copyright © 2016 by John Mallozzi