But the merriest of months is not all merry:
On its last day but one, on the verge of
June, we turn aside to think of those
Unable to be with us, for good reason,
Couched in sleep, the fastest of all sleeps,
Beyond arousal.
This is their day, wherever they may be,
The men of our big and little wars, who
fell on hard ground, or in grass, or
clawed at sand, or stained snow red,
or stumbled among jungle vines, or
dropped out of the sky, or went down
in the drink.
This is their day.
“Memorial Day” broadcast May 1983 on NPR