I found these poems online and find them to be an appropriate marker of Veteran’s Day.

Alden Solovy

Veterans Day Prayer

G-d of compassion,

G-d of dignity and strength,

Watch over the veterans of the United States

In recognition of their loyal service to our nation.

Bless them with wholeness and love.

Shelter them.

Heal their wounds,

Comfort their hearts.

Grant them peace.

G-d of justice and truth,

Rock of our lives,

Bless our veterans,

These men and women of courage and valor,

With a deep and abiding understanding

Of our profound gratitude.

Protect them and their families from loneliness and want.

Grant them lives of joy and bounty.

May their dedication and honor

Be remembered as a blessing

From generation to generation.

Blessed are You,

Protector and Redeemer,

Our Shield and our Stronghold.

To the Soldier, To the Veteran

These things I do not know:

The sound of a bullet.

The power of a blast.

The blood of a comrade.

The depth of your wound.

The terror at midnight.

The dread at dawn.

Your fear or your pain.

These things I know:

The sound of your honor.

The power of your courage.

The blood of your wound.

The depth of your strength.

The terror that binds you.

The dread that remains.

Your dignity and your valor.

For these things we pray:

The sound of your laughter.

The power of your voice.

The blood of your yearning.

The depth of your healing.

The joy that frees you.

The hope that remains.

Your wholeness and your love.

The Last Soldier

When the last soldier passes on,

When armies are disbanded and militias discharged,

When weapons are abandoned and armor discarded,

Your mission will, at last, be over.

For you know the soldier’s secret.

Yours was not a mission of war

Nor a mission of ruin.

Yours was not a mission of destruction

Nor a mission of death.

Your mission was safety, security, protection.

Your mission was honor, loyalty, service.

Your mission was to end violence, tyranny, despair.

When the last soldier passes on,

When the uniforms are retired and the final grave filled,

We will remember all who served and sacrificed for our nation.

Until then G-d of Old,

Watch over our soldiers and our veterans.

Renew their courage.

Rebuild their strength.

Heal their wounds.

Bind their hearts with Your steadfast love.

Remember them,

Bless then,

Sustain them,

And give them peace.