Please join us in celebrating the lives of all Pilipinos and Pilipinas whose remains are buried in the ground or memorialized in tombstones at the Arlington National Cemetery.

HAD  A RENDEZVOUS  WITH  DEATH

      BUT DEATH WAS A NO-SHOW

I had a rendezvous with Death

            at some disputed artery

that blocks the flow of blood

            to a heart not yet weary.

I had a rendezvous with Death

          over five decades ago

When my patrol was ambushed

          in far away Jolo.

O God, I thank You for giving me a look

          At Your pearly gates a nook

So near and yet so far

          A distance like the farthest star.

No, I do not wish to rush

          My destiny with my God

Only in God’s due time will I go

          When he says it’s time to go.

I have a rendezvous with Death

          No longer as a combat warrior

But as a humble prayer warrior

          Praying all night through.

                      by Cav Butch Moreto

              (Philippine Military Academy 1954)