I got a note in the mail a while back, And I opened it carefully, The mailman brought it in his sack, And it was addressed to me. The message was very poignant to me, And the point of it was soon found, It said, “ You are cordially invited, Leigh, To join us at The Highground”. The Highground is a very sacred place, Where many are seen to roam, And even it’s serenity cannot erase, The pain felt by those who made it home. Heroes of all conflicts are honored there, With solemn statues … [Read more...]

One day while I was off at war, Eating my lunch under a tree, A butterfly landed on my knee, And seemed to say,"I'm free! I'm free!" Now isn't that a quirk of fate, For an insect as fine as he, To know that he is forever free, Much more free than me, than me. But one fine day his end will come! That day will not come to me! At least until I've been through this war, And home again, free! Home again, free! -Leigh Livermore, RVN 1970 … [Read more...]

The sun plays the role of a lover, As a breeze plays across my back, And caresses my exposed skin with warmth, And like my lover, The sun gives me a feeling of warm, Deep down inside, When the caresses are that intimate, But surely nothing can replace, That Utopian happiness inspired by her. No, not even the sun. -Leigh Livermore, RVN 1970 … [Read more...]

Here I sit in a hospital bed, Long Binh, Viet Nam, The 24th med. Not much of anything really to do, Just help feed a buddy, Or read Life, or True. Nurses are nice, like in the world, But none can replace, That one special girl. It hurts, but I can laugh and walk, It hurts the guy next to me, To even try to talk. I look at these guys, all cut to hell, And thank God above, That I'm almost well! For some of the guys, the future looks dim, They've got to have courage, If … [Read more...]

A dream, Elusive as a wisp In the breeze. Floating softly Across the depths of my mind. Echoing from One crevice To eternity, And back again, This time Even more devastating Than before. And then, It's departure, As swift as it's arrival, My love, My life, My dream. -Leigh Livermore, RVN 1970 … [Read more...]

There was a man on Echo Recon’s team, Who wanted to walk out front it seemed<spanstyle='mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt'>. He carefully surveyed this strange new land, Searching for the evils close at hand.   Within his unit he was the eyes, That probed alertly to protect his guys. Watching for boobytraps and mines, While all his brethren followed behind.   He was so focused he could hear his own breath, One mental lapse would mean certain death. One … [Read more...]

A Poem by Leigh Livermore Down the corridors of love, Through the halls of our fears, In the face of death, Through the darkness of our sorrows, Down the paths of our dreams, Through the trials of lonliness, Through the forests of our hopes, And the fantasies of our dreams, Through the sunrise of our love, And the evening of time, Through the emptiness of eternity, Through the reality of now, Through our trials and tribulations, Through our moments of intimacy, Through your life, … [Read more...]

“Echo Recon”, were the words Top said, Just the thought brought me much dread! 11F40 was my MOS, Ops and Intel, where was my desk! So I gathered up every possession I had, And went out to the Quan Loi heli-pad. And as on my duffel I did sit, I thought,”Now I’m in a world of shit!” So as I sat and pondered my fate, Someone said, “The choppers late!” “Where ya’ headed?”, this warrior said, “To Echo Recon”, I replied with dread. “That’s who I’m with!”, he said real loud, And of his … [Read more...]

  We met in Indy one spring day, In 2002 in early May. We must have looked a scruffy lot, But for 32 years we hadn’t forgot. Each remembered all too well, His baptism into that fiery hell. Thrown all head first into the flame, Viet Nam was Satan’s name. Was it a nasty firefight, Or a single terrifying night? Whether it was one or the other, We became Echo Recon brothers. Now it seemed so far away, As we quietly talked on this spring day. But memories came flooding back, Like a … [Read more...]