[Verse 1]
Boot prints
On a playground swing
Blood in the dust
Where they used to sing
Dog tags clatter
Like a broken hymn
I know their names
But I can't save them
[Pre-Chorus]
Orders in my ear
Static and steel
They call this peace
But I know what I feel
[Chorus]
I’ve seen kids with loaded hands
Tiny fingers on demands
Glass-eyed children pulling pins
We turned their dreams into discipline
If this is honor
If this is war
Tell me what the hell we're fighting for
All I see
Is evil in a uniform
[Verse 2]
Buddy in my sights
'Cause he ran too far
Friendly fire
From a friendly star
He was joking
On the transport ride
Now he's letters
In a folded white
[Pre-Chorus]
Medals in a box
Mother in black
They call it duty
But she wants him back
[Chorus]
[Bridge]
[low vocal register]
Night vision paints them green
Still just bones and breath and fear
"We're the good ones" in my head
But that line disappears
When a child aims at my chest
Hands still shaking from last year
Do I shoot
Do I freeze
Or just drown in what I'm seeing here? [scream]
[crescendo]
[Chorus]