I watched my little boy grow up.

He worked his way through school;

Like all the other little boys,

He tried to "play it cool!"

He never had too many friends-

He worked quite well alone.

I feared that he was still too young

To go out on his own.

Then one day he came to me

To say his choice was made-

The Army was the life for him!

His dream would never fade.

At his high school graduation

Filled with honors and with pride,

I tried to turn him elsewhere,

For my fears I could not hide.

So we went to see the Sergeant

And we signed on every form.

My son was so excited

And I was so forlorn.

Soon, he went away to "Basic"

And I cried when he was gone.

I prayed and dreamed about him

Through the night, until the dawn.

Then the letters started coming,

And my fears began to fade;

For I knew my son was living

By the coices he had made.

He came home right after Basic.

He was standing straight and tall.

He was transformed into a soldier,

Not the boy who'd left, at all.

As we talked, I came to notice,

He's no longer brash, nor loud.

My son has grown into a man

Who makes me very proud!