The words between the astriks are the words to an Army marching cadence, if you're curious.
Don't Cry
Somewhere there's a mother
She's cryin' for her son
'Cause he's an Airborne Ranger
And he's fightin' far from home
He said 'don't cry me no tears,
I don't need your sympathy,
'Cause I'm an Airborne Ranger
And that's all I'll ever be
She remembers waving goodbye to her son as the crowded train pulled out of the station carrying hundreds of young men off to war. She tried not to cry in front of him, she knew he wanted her to be strong. But when the last car was little more than a speck on the horizon and the clouds of smoke and steam had faded away, she pulled out her white lace handkerchief and wept.
Somewhere there's a daughter,
She's cryin' for her dad
'Cause he's an Airborne Ranger
And he's fightin' far from home
He said 'don't cry me no tears,
I don't need your sympathy,
'Cause I'm an Airborne Ranger
And that's all I'll ever be
'Momma,' she asked, after her father had hugged her goodbye and promised her this was just goodbye for a little while, not for good, 'why does daddy have to leave us? Isn't there someone else who can go?' Her eyes hold all the innocence of a child that, before the war is over, will be gone forever.
Somewhere there's a woman
She's cryin' for her man
'Cause he's an Airborne Ranger
And he's fightin' far from home
He said 'don't cry me no tears,
I don't need you sympathy,
'Cause I'm an Airborne Ranger
And that's all I'll ever be,
That's all I'm gonna be,
That's all I wanna be
'Promise me you'll be safe,' she had begged the evening before he left. She'd received hasty words of comfort in return and declarations that she knew no matter how well intended they were at the moment, would go out the window at the first hint of adventure. He left her standing on the porch with a kiss, holding onto her dreams of the future a scrap of paper with his Company address as a warm breeze rustled through the honeysuckle vines.