Brotherhood

From "The Brotherhood," author unknown

I now know why men who have been to war yearn to reunite. Not to tell stories or look at old photographs; not to laugh or weep. Comrades gather because they long to be with the men who once acted at their best; men who suffered and sacrificed, who suffered and were stripped of their humanity.

I did not pick these men. They were delivered by fate and the military. But I know them in a way I know no other men. I have never given anyone such trust. They were willing to guard something more precious than my life. They would have carried my reputation, the memory of me. It was part of a bargain we all made, the reason we were so willing to die for one another.

As long as I have a memory, I will think of them all day, everyday. I am sure that when I leave this world, my last thought will be of my family and my comrades--such good men."