Dear Soldier
We said goodbye on the front porch,
You walked away, I closed the door.
The same door we've said goodbye from,
For the last four years, you've gone and come.
You didn't look back, not even a smile,
Now you're gone away, a thousand miles.
Dear Recruit D,
I write a letter, but it's more a plea.
How is boot camp going?
This bad feeling keeps growing...
Do you miss me? I miss you a lot.
Why isn't he responding? Erase that thought.
I hope you are well, I am doing fine.
I would be better if you wrote back this time.
Two months in, no letter.
Then, Dear love, I miss you more than ever.
I'm sorry I haven't written.
Time here is earned, not given.
Just pen smudged on a page,
And every fear I had suddenly fades.
I love you a lot, I hope you know.
Sergeant's calling, I got to go!
I need more, more than two lines.
Questions and questions flood my mind.
I cried and cried, thankful and in pain.
I cried so much, my bed thought it had rained.
For ninety days, I waited for you,
Thirteen weeks, to see a stone statue.
You are cold and distant,
Taller and proud, I hold back resistance.
Afraid to touch you, in fear,
You're a mirage, that you're not really here.
Thoughts a mile a minute, all quiet,
With one kiss from a green private.
The next few weeks all go by in a blur,
Then back to, When will you return?
Dear Private D, where are you?
Private D, it's been a while, week two.
Dear love, honey, dear Private D,
I write, but you don't respond to me.
Weeks stack up like unopened mail,
A familiar loneliness follows the trail.
Till the phone rings, unknown. I pick up anyway.
"Dear Mrs. D, we regret to say..."
Dear D, please say it's not true!
Say they're wrong! That it wasn't you!
A folded flag in a cardboard box,
With uniforms, medals, and folded socks.
Underneath is a pile, all I see:
Unsent boot camp letters, addressed to me.
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