Audie Murphy, "Where Has Freedom Gone?"

"Where Has Freedom Gone?"
by Audie Murphy

"Dusty old helmet, rusty old gun,
    they sit in the corner and wait.
Two souvenirs of the Second World War
    that have withstood the time and the hate.

Many times I've wanted to ask them,
    and now that we're here all alone,
Relics all three of a long ago war,
    "Where has freedom gone?"

Mute witness to a time of much trouble,
    where kill or be killed was the law.
Were these implements used with high honor?
    What was the glory they saw?

"Freedom flies in your heart like an eagle,
    let it soar with the high winds above.
Among the spirits of soldiers now sleeping,
    guard it with care and with love."

I salute my old friends in the corner,
    I agree with all they have said,
And if the moment of truth comes tomorrow,
    I'll be free, or by God, I'll be dead."
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"Audie Murphy was born on June 20, 1924 near Kingston, Texas, the 7th of 12 children. He rose to national fame as the most decorated U.S. combat soldier of World War II, with 33 awards and decorations: every decoration for valor that his country had to offer, some of them more than once, and 5 decorations by France and Belgium. In the later part of his life, he went on to have a successful movie career, including the extremely popular "To Hell and Back" (1955), based on his memoir of the same name."

- http://masonic-poets-society.com/Murphy.htm

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