Patty Sullivan

This Army of Friends patty sullivan

The small coffin
Stood strong

The altar
Command central

He’s now classified:
Missing in action

No longer the target
For the cancer cells
The enemy
That had ambushed
And long occupied
His defenseless body

The infiltration of the enemy
Now complete

His tour of duty
Unbelievably short

The obituary reads:
He lost the battle…
He fought valiantly
And always
With personal courage

To some,
He could have been
A solitary soldier
Alone on the frontlines

Victory or defeat
Always an unknown

But as brothers in arms
And even new recruits
They created their own campaign

No general’s orders
No chain of command

This self-selected convoy
Came before the final bugle call
And as an unconventional force
Closed ranks
Around this wounded soldier

They did what they could
To build morale:
A smile,
A song,
An occasional shared laugh

But the enemy was a constant threat
Even with such a strong
And caring
Line of defense

The battle – they knew- was soon to be lost

For this army of friends

So with weakened armor
And discarded arsenals
They closed ranks
And with impressive integrity
Honored their now fallen friend

Their loyalty obvious
They stayed ‘til the end
Never a duty,
But honor to a friend

And with distinguished conduct
In the face of such personal despair
They gave a final salute
For a comrade, a friend

This army of friends

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