''Just a Common Soldier'' Poem Honors 60th Anniversary of D-Day

(PRWEB) May 27, 2004 -- In 1985, A. Lawrence Vaincourt, a World War II Air Force veteran and Canadian columnist, wrote a poem entitled Just a Common Soldier (A Soldier Died Today) for his November 11th column.

A bittersweet look at the way society treats the aging soldier, the piece has since become an international success. It appears on thousands of web sites around the world, is read every Memorial Day on national radio and has been reprinted in hundreds of newspapers in Canada, the US, Britain, Australia and South Africa.

Ann Landers featured it several times in her syndicated column, and also wrote cover notes for the published collection in which the poem appeared.

The Canadian web site that handles requests for reprints is deluged every Memorial Day and again November 11th with requests for reprints. Last May it received over 8,000 such requests in one hour after being broadcast on the national Coast To Coast radio program.

Families of veterans from around the world write to tell how much comfort they find in the words, and it is regularly used as part of memorial services in numerous countries.

A. Lawrence Vaincourt is still going strong at 80, writing his column and books. He recently received the 2004 Column of the Year award from the Quebec Community Newspapers Association.

His homage to the common soldier has come to mean so much to the thousands of men and women around the world who answered the call to aid their countries.

Below you will find the original text of the poem. You can also read it on the official web site at: http://www.vaincourt.homestead.com

For information and interviews, please contact: Randy Vaincourt (416) 534-8899 e-mail: vaincourt@canada.com

Just a Common Soldier

(A Soldier Died Today)

by A. Lawrence Vaincourt

He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast, And he sat around the Legion, telling stories of the past. Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done, In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, every one.

And tho' sometimes, to his neighbors, his tales became a joke, All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke. But we'll hear his tales no longer for old Bill has passed away, And the world's a little poorer, for a soldier died today.

He will not be mourned by many, just his children and his wife, For he lived an ordinary and quite uneventful life. Held a job and raised a family, quietly going his own way, And the world won't note his passing, though a soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state, While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great. Papers tell their whole life stories, from the time that they were young, But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land A guy who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man? Or the ordinary fellow who, in times of war and strife, Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?

A politician's stipend and the style in which he lives Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives. While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all, Is paid off with a medal and perhaps, a pension small.

It's so easy to forget them for it was so long ago, That the old Bills of our Country went to battle, but we know It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys, Who won for us the freedom that our Country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger, with your enemies at hand, Would you want a politician with his ever-shifting stand? Or would you prefer a soldier, who has sworn to defend His home, his kin and Country and would fight until the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin, But his presence should remind us we may need his like again. For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier's part Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor while he's here to hear the praise, Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days. Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say, Our Country is in mourning, for a soldier died today.

©1985 A. Lawrence Vaincourt