Milestone Misses is a heart-wrenching poem that captures the complex emotions of a soldier returning home after a long deployment, only to realise the profound cost of his absence from his daughter’s life. It paints the internal struggle of a man who has given everything to serve his country, yet finds himself grappling with the irreplaceable moments he missed while he was away. The poem begins by describing the soldier’s last days of deployment. The anticipation of returning home is overwhelming. For the soldier. this separation was not just a physical absence, but a loss of time, time that can never be reclaimed. As he touches down on home soil, excitement and relief rush through him. He hurries toward the gates, eager to reunite with his family, to feel the warmth of their embrace after months of separation. The joy of returning home, however, quickly gives way to a gut wrenching moment of realisation.