[Verse 1] Dust on the standard, mud in the seams Young boys shipped out to defend somebody’s dream Maps on a table, red lines drawn clean Then the boots hit the ground where the truth turns mean Iron on iron, the column moves slow Orders come down, but the names never show A crown wants a border, a king wants a win We’re the ones in the dirt when the counting begins [Chorus] Blood in the soil, all for a name We carry the wound, they hand us the blame Strangers’ land, but we’re buried alone Fighting for borders we never called home To them, we’re a medal; to us, we’re a cost A roll call of sons and the years that they lost [Verse 2] Parchment in the post with the ink running thin “Tell Ma I’m alright”—that’s the lie tucked in One came back limping, one came back changed One stared through the window like the world was strange Pinned on a ribbon, shook hands for a day Then shut the door when the cheers died away No room for the nightmares, no words for the pain Just a face in the photo and a chair in the rain [Chorus] Blood in the soil, all for a name We carry the wound, they hand us the blame Strangers’ land, but we’re buried alone Fighting for borders we never called home To them, we’re a medal; to us, we’re a cost A roll call of sons and the years that they lost [Bridge] The history page gives the generals a crown But it leaves out the mothers who waited in town They don’t write the names that the church bells repeat Or the empty place kept at the end of the street Glory gets polished, the truth gets denied Valley boys sent out; valley mothers stay behind [Instrumental Break] [Chorus] Blood in the soil, all for a name We carry the wound, they hand us the blame Strangers’ land, but we’re buried alone Fighting for borders we never called home To them, we’re a medal; to us, we’re a cost A roll call of sons and the years that they lost [Outro] The guns fall quiet; the flags come down Ash on the fields where the empire was crowned Wind through the grass, names cut in stone Far from the homes that we used to know Far from home
