Happy Veterans Day to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces. Thank you for the sacrifices you have made to defend our nation and our freedom.

Today I would like to share one of my favorite military songs because it speaks to the impact of military service not only on our service members, but also on their families.

I’ve been to several Five For Fighting concerts over the years, and the band’s music hits a special chord with me.  When he played the song Two Lights at a recent concert, the lead singer, John Ondrasik, talked about the song’s origin.

It’s about a proud father who is also confronting his own fears and worries when his son goes off to the Iraq war.  The father learns a soldier in his son’s unit has been killed – but there’s no more information, so he doesn’t know whether it was his son. The father can’t stand to sit at home and wait for the call, so he decides to go out for a drive.  Before he leaves, he tells his wife to “leave two lights on” if she finds out that their son is coming home.  Powerful.

What’s a tap on your shoulder
That you’re afraid to look over
A soldier’s down in a firefight
No one can look me in the eye

This is what it means to be alone.

Tear out my heart
Feed it to lions
For this one wish I beg you this tonight
Show me no mercy
But spare me my pride
I’m going for a drive
 
And if you find out he’s coming home
When I come around the corner
I’ll know that it’s all right
Just leave me two lights
 

Click on the link below to listen. I hope you enjoy the song, and feel free to comment on your interpretation of the song’s ending.

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