Gettysburg Days of sorrow, days of joy, Being where both man and boy, Gave themselves unto the fight, For causes each believed was right. From on a tower I survey, The field of battle on that day; July it was, in sixty three, They fought for rights to keep them free. Johnny Reb fought for the South, States Rights claims came from his mouth. Billy Yank, in woolens blue, To save our union, bravely fought too. Forty thousand men and more, Were victims in those days of gore. Eight thousand more or less were killed, Ten thousand of them prisons filled. Now icons bronze, and granite too, Are all that's left to tell us who, Fought and died for their ideals, Those days on Pennsylvania's fields. Tho' I was born a Southern son, I thank my God the Union won, Because the Rebs championed a cause, I know is filled with many flaws. For it was never HIS intent, That any man or child be bent, Beneath the rod of those who thought, A human being could be bought. We choose to think, despite our pain, Those we've loved died not in vain, But today it's clear to me, Death is vain if not in victory. Poem copyright ©2011 Wayne Hepburn - All Rights Reserved Image: "Battle of Gettysburg" by Currier & Ives