From the recording Not on Our Watch
“NOT ON OUR WATCH” comes from my own life. I served in the U.S. Army and spent two tours in Vietnam. I came home, but part of the war came home with me. For decades, I have lived with the memories, the nightmares, PTSD, depression, and the kind of wounds that do not show up on an X-ray.
I also know what it means to depend on the VA. I have sat in those waiting rooms. I have needed doctors, nurses, counselors, medications, and people willing to listen when the nights were bad and the memories came back. I know how much it matters when a veteran feels heard, respected, and cared for—and how frightening it can feel when that connection is missing.
That is why this song is personal. “NOT ON OUR WATCH” is my way of saying that no veteran should ever have to beg for care, wonder whether they still matter, or feel like they have been forgotten after giving part of their life to this country.
The song also honors the people inside the VA system who keep showing up every day—the doctors, nurses, counselors, caregivers, and staff members trying to help veterans through physical injuries, PTSD, depression, sleepless nights, and battles that may be invisible to everyone else.
Technology can help. Systems can improve. But nothing replaces compassion, patience, and a real human being looking at a veteran and saying, “I’m here. I hear you. We’re going to get through this.”
This is not about politics or parties. It is about a promise.
We stood the watch when our country called.
Now we have to stand watch for one another.
That is what “NOT ON OUR WATCH” means to me.
**No veteran should ever have to stand alone. Not on our watch.**
Lyrics
NOT ON OUR WATCH
[Intro – sung, clear male lead, restrained piano and acoustic guitar]
My name is Rick Gaspa, I’ve carried these scars
I served this country beneath its flag and stars
And after all these years, one truth still remains:
A veteran should never have to beg to ease the pain
[Verse 1 – acoustic rhythm builds]
I gave this country everything I knew to give
And like so many others, came home and learned to live
With memories that linger, with wounds you cannot see
And doctors, nurses, caregivers who’ve stood there next to me
But sometimes there are hallways where the waiting feels too long
A veteran starts wondering where they still belong
Nobody who served should ever feel pushed aside
The promise made to veterans should never be denied
[Pre-Chorus]
We stood the watch when our country called
Now stand beside us when the night starts to fall
[Chorus – strong male lead, tasteful harmonies]
Not on our watch will a veteran stand alone
Not on our watch will their struggle go unknown
Keep the promise, keep the faith
Give them care with dignity and grace
For every veteran carrying wounds inside
We’ll stand together, side by side
We served our country, now hear us say:
Don’t let the promise fade away
[Verse 2 – drums and bass enter]
There are doctors and nurses giving all they can
Helping wounded veterans learn to stand again
There are counselors listening through another sleepless night
Trying to help somebody make it to the morning light
They need the tools, they need the time
To reach that veteran standing on the line
Because behind every chart and every name
There’s a human being carrying real pain
[Verse 3 – stronger build]
Technology can help us, but it cannot replace
A steady human voice or a familiar face
You cannot measure trauma with numbers on a screen
Or know from lines of data what a nightmare really means
Care should still be personal, patient and kind
For wounds of the body and wounds of the mind
A veteran should know when the darkness comes
There is somewhere to turn, and someone will come
[Pre-Chorus]
We stood the watch when our country called
Now stand beside us when the night starts to fall
[Chorus]
Not on our watch will a veteran stand alone
Not on our watch will their struggle go unknown
Keep the promise, keep the faith
Give them care with dignity and grace
For every veteran carrying wounds inside
We’ll stand together, side by side
We served our country, now hear us say:
Don’t let the promise fade away
[Verse 4 – emotional lift]
This isn’t left, this isn’t right
It’s keeping faith with those who served and sacrificed
Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines
Coast Guard, Space Force — every uniform between
Different generations, different wars
Different memories behind different doors
But one thing binds us through the years:
Nobody who served should disappear
[Bridge – SOLO MALE LEAD, no chanting]
Some veterans came home carrying scars
Some brought the battlefield home in their hearts
Some are fighting battles nobody sees
Some just need someone to say, “Stay here with me”
So we’ll keep speaking
We’ll keep reaching out
Not with anger, not with doubt
But with one promise we refuse to break:
We take care of our own, whatever it takes
[Instrumental Build – piano, cello, guitar and restrained military snare]
[Final Chorus – key change, soaring male vocal]
Not on our watch will a veteran stand alone
Not on our watch will their struggle go unknown
Keep the promise, keep the faith
Give them care with dignity and grace
For every veteran carrying wounds inside
We’ll stand together, side by side
We served our country, now hear us say:
Don’t let the promise fade away
[Final Lift]
For every veteran awake at three
For every family wondering what they need
For every doctor, nurse and helping hand
For every brother and sister who took that stand
Blue Wave Revival will keep singing strong
Reminding every veteran: you still belong
The watch continues, the mission remains
Stand for each other through the darkness and pain
[Outro – soft male vocal]
We stood the watch then...
We stand the watch now...
And no veteran stands alone.
[Long Instrumental Outro – NO VOCALS]
Piano reprises the chorus melody. Cello and warm strings enter, followed by clean electric guitar and restrained military snare. Build slowly, then resolve with a strong, complete instrumental ending.