Drei Kreuze für Deutschland [English translation]

The father a captain, he's with the Navy

A big soldier with a frozen face

He commands his ship and also his family

His uniform faultless, he never shows his love

He never shows any weakness, for he must command

He's never taken a single sick day, because he's got to be there

When the father preaches a sermon, his God is discipline

The wind seems to push him along

They're waiting with him for the ship

His two sons are growing up so fast

The wedding picture shows his only smile

His frigate must sail for the Persian Gulf

At night a man goes overboard, the search is in vain

No coffin comes home, only a cross on a ribbon

Somewhere his corpse sinks to the bottom of the sea

The little cross1 weighs lightly

It weighs so lightly in the mother's hand, and then outside the dog barks

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan2

And in the kitchen you can see the mother waiting

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan

And in the kitchen, for years now, you can see the mother waiting

The older brother returns

In his head, weapons bark

His brothers in arms cry out to him, they scream his name

And when he dreams he sees the streets

In brownish tones and lined with Iraqis

And he knows the bombs, the bombs are waiting

For his brothers in arms, the guys that died there

And from one they took both arms

And from another his eyes and from three their noses

And he couldn't do anything and that's the bad part

There's only one way out a voice tells him

That he hears even with hearing protection on at the firing range

The voice came from Kabul to North Friesland

And so he takes his assault rifle,

Salutes the flag and puts the barrel in his mouth

Soon, at home, the doorbell rings

Two grave-faced soldiers convey their condolences

And then, outside, the dog barks

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan

And in the kitchen you can see the mother waiting

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan

And in the kitchen, for years now, you can see the mother waiting

The younger brother is back, he's Mama's favorite

She says "please, stay with me," and he stays there

Lives in the little house so that nothing else will happen

A desk job, he's stationed here

He was in Kunduz for three years, he only feels emptiness

Old friends want to bullshit, no one wants to talk

Everyone wants out of the little village, wants to drive to a party

But he's stuck forever in Afghanistan

Over the roof of the base are the same stars

In Germany, or abroad

As he's waiting for the bus, right in front of Mother's garden

Two stupid skinheads chase a black man

The younger brother has courage, the other guy has a club

Poor rich Germany also produces the odd monster

His background is reported in detail in the local newspaper

The Army awards a cross and then, outside, the dog barks

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan

And in the kitchen you can see the mother waiting

The house stands by the sea, a little house by the sea

With mother, father and two sons, and she loves them dearly

And a labrador and a minivan

And in the kitchen, for years now, you can see the mother waiting

The mother stands alone in front of the base

And asks, what have you done with my sons

No one is responsible, can tell her

Where they died, none of them killed them

Mother stands in front of the Admiral, looks at the medals

So many colorful brooches you get for murder

Then she takes the three crosses

Her husband, her sons, a captain, two lieutenants

And makes her three crosses3

She makes her three crosses

Three crosses for Germany

1. The whole 'crosses' theme will work better for readers from Great Britain than those from the United States. One meaning is obviously the sort of cross that marks a grave. But in Great Britain, as in Germany, a military medal is often called some sort of 'cross', whereas in the United States they are almost always either a 'medal' or a 'star.'2. freely translated, really it just means a family car3. Catholics make the sign of the cross three times, for example before the reading from the Gospels during Mass