Friday, September 27, 2013

The Catholic Defender: Lady Of The Valley

My Brother David was a veteran of the Viet Nam War and he really did not survive it.

Like many other Vets, David did come home but because of the climate of the times, many Viet Nam Veterans never fully integrated back to the States.

According to John Draper, the project director of the "National Suicide Prevention Lifeline" states that Viet Nam Veterans are the highest of any particular group.


When David would go into town, he was always messed with by the local Sheriffs department. When they saw his car they always searched him.

On one occasion, knowing that he was going into town, he found a black snake living in one of our sycamore trees and he placed it in the trunk knowing they were going to stop him. 

Sure enough, they did and when they found the snake, that earned him a flash light across the back of the head.  He felt that he had at least some satisfaction that he earned that one.

David enrolled in a local bible college thinking he could get himself set on a right path, but that did not last long.  This was one of the hardest things my Mother had to endure watching one of her Son's enduring much pain just to live.

David eventually pulled up stakes and traveled west to Kansas for a little while, but he would end up in Seattle Washington where he began working at a hospital working with physical therapy.

It seemed like a couple of years went by, I was in college myself with a baseball scholarship when the Chaplain called me to his office.  It was then that I found out David was killed.  The Chaplain didn't know how at the time, but I spent some time in the chapel and made plans to go home to help my Mother.

Remembering this has been very difficult, I recently rediscovered a song that helped me cope with the loss.  It is from a group called White Lion, the song called "Lady of the Valley".  The words just fit perfectly with my emotions.

The words of the song:


Lyrics to Lady Of The Valley :



lady of the valley
can you hear me cry
in the sillness of the night
I have lost my brother
in the fights of the war
and my heart has broken down

in the night I cry but no one seems to hear
I step into the light but all I feel is fear

lady of the valley
can you bring him back
to the days when we were kids
once we were together
we stood young and strong
now it seems so long ago

the golden key is at the end of the chain
how it hurts ohh lady free me from this pain

in the night I cry to the lady of the valley
cause I'll die without the lady of the valley
in the night I call to the lady of the valley
on my knees I fall before the lady of the valley

in the valley lies the treasure
and the lady guards it well
he who bears all the pressure
is the one to break the spell
there's a sign that I've followed
and it has led me to your seat
I have brought my fallen brother
and I've laid him, yes I've laid him
at your feet

in the night I cry to the lady of the valley
cause I'll die without the lady of the valley
in the night I call to the lady of the valley
on my knees I fall before the lady of the valley
This life is but a journey, we are pilgrims in a strange land.  We have a God who truly loves us.  Jesus is our King, and from the cross he gives us His Mother that we can place our pain before Our Lady of the Valley.



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