Letter Home

Dear Mom

(author unknown)

The war is over now
My task is finally through,
But Mom there is something
I must ask of you.

I have a friend, oh what a friend
He has no home you see,
So Mom I would like
To bring him home with me.

If someone comes home with you,
I'm sure that he could stay
For a day or two.



Please Mom, I have to tell you something
Please don't be alarmed,
My friend, you see in battle
Happen to lose one arm.

My son, don't be afraid
To bring him home with you,
He could stay and visit
For even a week or two.

But Mom, he's not just a friend
He's a brother too,
That's why I want him to live with us
And be a son to you.

But...before you give me answer
There's something I must say,
My friend fought in a battle
In which he lost a leg.

My son, it hurts me to say this
But my answer must be no,
Your father and I would have no time
For one who is crippled so.

Sometime later a letter came
Saying their son was dead,
And when they read the cause of death
"Suicide" it said.

Sometime later when the casket came
Wrapped with the country flag,
They saw their son lying there
With out an arm or leg.

"At the Polytrauma Unit of the VA medical center in Palo Alto, we meet four TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) patients who are working to put their lives back together. Only some of them bear obvious wounds, such as a lost eye or a missing part of a skull, but all share in common serious injuries to their brains. These veterans must relearn everyday things that we take for granted. Some struggle with simple motor skills, like picking up a pencil or walking normally; others grapple with memory loss and emotional difficulties, like one Army veteran who can’t remember giving birth to her own daughter." (From War Stories from Ward 7-D. Click here to watch video)