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Mommy, Where Is My Daddy?

I hear you walking in the night;
You think I’m fast asleep.
I know your sounds of loneliness;
I hear you pray and weep

You think that I’m too young to know
The agony and pain
Of missing the man gone away
In search of war and fame.

He didn’t come home with all the rest;
It’s been four years and more.
His squadron mates don’t know his fate,
O cruel, unending war.

I try to fill the gap he’s left
For emptiness adjust.
I love him though he’s just a dream,
And picture that we dust.

Oh Mommy, where is my daddy?
Won’t he ever be coming home?
You say he loves us so very much,
But he’s left us o long alone.

****

Lauren, my precious daughter,
This tale you must be told.
Your daddy wore the silver wings
Of Air Force pilots bold.

He loved the world of speed and sound;
He flew the Phantom Two.
And life was love and freedom’s fight;
What happiness we knew.

He told me before we married,
About his other life,
And how he wanted me to be
A loyal Air Force wife.

At times I hated those four words,
But did the best I could.
I know he loved all the more,
Because I understood.

You’d have to see the look he wore
When coming in at night.
A hug, a kiss and then his words:
“Gee, I had a great flight.”

He’d tell us of the wondrous things
He’d seen and done that day.
Aloft in his great chariot,
Holding the world at bay.

He’s play with you and fool with me,
Out on the front-room floor.
The talk about a pot of gold
And rainbow he did score.

But now he’s gone, listed missing,
Ten thousand miles away.
And nothing left for us to do.
Just sit and wait and pray.

He will be coming home one day,
Believe with all your heart.
He’ll laugh and hold us in his arms,
And time again will start.

****

Myrna and Lauren, my darlings,
The hurt I’ve caused to you.
It pains me more than my sad fate,
For nothing I can do.

The endless days have turned to years;
Impossible, it seems.
And all our plans and all our hopes
Are now just shattered dreams.

Honey, they’ve just about killed it,
The drive and the desire
To make my mark and get ahead.
Just embers now, no fire.

I know that I must fly again,
Be free and know the joy,
As boundless skies and purest air
Help memories destroy.

I know that I must love again,
My child and faithful wife.
The dim-bright figures of my past,
The touchstones of my life.

I seek elusive happiness,
That most men never know.
To be in love with home and work,
And help my country grow.

And God must play a vital part;
To him all thanks belong.
For he is here when I am weak,
And helps me get along.

Still, I run an uncertain race.
Ahead another bend.
My breath comes short and I’m so worn,
Not sure if there’s an end.

I think of small things like front doors,
Rooms with familiar chairs,
Recollections, I long to see,
And you upon the stairs.

But now I’m gone, listed missing,
Ten thousand miles away.
And nothing left for me to do,
Just sit and wait and pray.

I will be coming home one day;
Believe with all your heart.
I’ll hold you in my arms and…try to laugh,
And time again will start.

Thank you for sharing this with us.

Met Gen. Borling at a November presentation and book-signing in Chicago across from the Pritzker Library. Brought a Navy SARC, who also holds the Silver Star, to listen to the presentation. In a short private conversation, the general encouraged the Corpsman to write about his time in Afghanistan but my young friend demurred. I think the event, although 4 years ago, is still fresh in his mind.

"Taps On The Walls"...poems generated by our POWs while captive.

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Prayers up for those who did, and did not, make it home...

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