THE SOUND OF TAPS

THE SOUND OF TAPS

IN MEMORY OF VAL SIMONDS

I wasn't ready to hear the sound of Taps again,
that lonely sound from a buglers' horn -
I wasn't ready to say goodbye again,
too soon, unexpected and we all mourn.

We didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

Val Simonds was another medic in Company G
near our Fox Company on Christmas Hill.
Another medic, like our John McLain and Dr. Bob,
out there in the mud, surviving by pure will.

We didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

We didn't meet until the fiftieth comemoration
of the Cease Fire in Washington, D.C.
We were soldiers, we were the Mud Dogs,
we were there to keep our country free.

We didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

I wish I had known him then, I heard
that he was fun-loving, and I understand
how by his courage and his quick wit
he was able to save many a wounded man.

We didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

In 2003 the Band of Brothers reunited
in Oklahoma City and Val was there,
sharing a story, sharing a smile -
sharing a piece of our lives, to care.

We didn't have a chance to say goodbye.

At our goodbye party, when friends gathered,
The golden voice of Perry Como ('twas Val)
joined John McLain and Sam Gann in song,
bringing tears to every old guy and gal.

Maybe this was our "goodbye"...

The sound of Taps echo in Heaven
as another Brother is called home.