That first year apart
brought many cards and letters.
I knew that once he was home again,
everything would be better.

At first he was a mechanic
for the helicopter company.
But the loss of men was so great
he soon was placed as a gunner.

Flying in to get the wounded
was dangerous duty indeed.
Our young men were fighting,
many injured and in great need.

At home in warm houses,
our neighbors learned this son’s fate.
It seemed that all we could do
was sit, and worry, and wait.

Then the letter came
and a call from the Red Cross.
He had been injured
but all was not lost.

　He would soon recover.
He was lucky, so they said.
But, he’d not be coming home.
It was back to his squad instead.

Our the disappointment was great,
so we started making plans to meet.
He’d ask for his R & R in Hawaii,
and I’d fly there that very same week.

Arrangements were hastily made
for me to meet him there.
I’d never been on an airplane,
the anticipation impossible to bare.

Hawaii is a beautiful place
to spend a week on R & R,
But when you’re so much in love,
does it matter where you are?

We had a wonderful week together
in this breath-taking place.
But time flew by so quickly
as if it were in a race.

Suddenly, back to the war for him,
to the mainland it was for me.
His tour of duty was half over.
Patience seemed to be the key.

When he returns safe and sound,
we want to start our new life.
Finally we’ll be together,
at last, as man and wife.

© copyright Donna Hale Chandler