By Mark A. Leon

He said he’d write as we said goodbye
Dressed in his best shirt and tie
He was a boy I swore my life I would love til the end of time
I cried as his plane disappeared into the clouds
A soldier boy, a man, a stranger in a strange land
Thousands of miles separate our love, but the promise of the young is stronger than gold

Waited by the moonlight for a word or call
Waited again on another nightfall
Spring turned to summer, summer turned cold
Frozen in a moment, feeling more alone

I remember the smile just before that kiss
“I’ll be back and then never to leave you again”
Those words, in a locket I keep
Clenching each day until the promise becomes one more kiss

One day the letter came
Dangling off the front porch
To my love, a promise I keep the envelope read
With those words, a love rejoiced
Tear it open, let the ink bleed into these veins

“I’m sorry my love so sweet, these weeks, months have worn me deep
I miss your touch, that smile, that feeling I keep
To be in your arms again is all I need
I’ll be home soon, I promise you this
When we reunite, it will be with a long deep kiss
Miss me not, my sweet baby
Soon, I will return and spend my lifetime dancing to our freedom
Love always your soldier, your hero, your loving soul mate”

A teenage girl alone on the porch blessed by the angels who now left her a bed to red
A snowfall began
White, fresh and pure as the sand
A message from above

More months would pass
Silence ensured as the flowers began to bloom
So far away, his love must stay
Then, with the blooming of a new season, the footsteps paved the way on a path of leaves perfectly placed in nature’s silly way

A soldier strong and proud
Standing before his most cherished honor

A teenage girl, so proud to be
Forever yours, a soldier and me