numbers don’t talk,


numbers don’t laugh;


they don’t breath, or even have a heart, 

numbers don’t die.

 

numbers don’t have a caring Mother, 

numbers don’t have a loving Father; 

they don’t have a Brother, or even a Sister, 

numbers don’t die.

 

numbers don’t cause a heart to fall, 

numbers don’t stay with you forever; 

they don’t hold a place in your heart, 

numbers don’t die.

 

numbers don’t cause a Mother to grieve, 

numbers don’t cause a Mother to weep; 

they don’t cause a Mother to wail, 

numbers don’t die.

 

numbers are only numbers—nothing more;


one comes after none, two after one,


three thousand after two, four thousand after three; 

numbers only grow.

 

numbers don’t have a soul, a life behind their eyes;


they don’t have a Son to read to, or a Daughter’s cheek to kiss; 

a Wife to embrace, or a Brother to love;
numbers don’t die.

 

no Son to squeeze, no Daughter to miss, 

no Christmases with their family,


no birthdays to share;

 

numbers are only numbers, but behind each is a story;


each has a family—each has a Mother, a Father, a Sister, a Brother, 

each has a Wife, a Son, a Daughter—


each had an Impact.

 

He is part of a list, he is now a number;


the number will be overlooked by many—but not by me; 

To me, He is more than letters carved in to granite, 

more than a name on a list,


more than a death toll—


He is my family.


He is my hero.