It has been over 30 years now,
Your tour in Vietnam has ended, but,
it is still with you!

Having not been there, it's hard for me to understand,
how that experience has imprinted your mind, heart and being, but, I do know,
it is still with you!

Maybe it was because you were so young and impressionable back then.
You were open to all the excitement of being a young man, facing your future
and, you were thrown there, to "Hell" on earth.
It wasn't fair, but the reality of war dampened your spirit, and,
it is still with you!

Sometimes, I feel you have this wall around you that nothing can penetrate.
Can you ever let your guard down and let your true emotions come through?
Can't you ever let it go?
Why, oh why,
is it still with you?

Listen! You need to know this.
Your fighting, as well as your survival, was for us, your brothers and sisters back home.
We could say "thank you" until we're blue in the face,
but the words to truly thank you for what you did for us simply don't exist.
We can welcome you home with "open arms" now.
We know it's much too late to let you know that you truly were our heroes, but,
we want you to know, not only that, but also that our total lack of appreciation back then,
is still with us!