On Flying (age 10)

I touched the sky today.
I don't know why.
I felt birds sing,
heard bells ring.
I went up in the sky.
I want to do this til I die.

On Flying (age 16)

I kissed you last evening.
Dizzy. I felt my stomach flip
and take a slow spin into a dive.
Could we fly again tonight?

On Flying (age 22)

I kiss the wingtips of my plane
for bringing me safe to ground.
And you, I wish I could kiss you too,
But I'm afraid I'd never come down.

They say that seasons change
And I suppose it's true.
But one thing's never changed --
The way I'm loving you.

*****

On Friendship (age 10)

A friend really cares,
He shares,
He lets you know he's there,
He plays fair.

On Friendship (age 16)

So simple. Be a friend to me,
it's all I ask.
Teach and learn and grow and love,
it's really quite easy.

Only a few fistfights
and we learned to compromise.
Didn't we?

On Friendship (age 22)

Oh, God!
(And I catch my breath)
You, me, all of us,
and eternity embracing.
(my fingers shake
as I write this)
Quiver into my soul
the fatal words
that you are dead,
nail them to my heart.
Because I don't --
think I believe you.

****

On Love (age 10)

I love my dad
even when he hits me
And I love Rafe
even when he's bossy.

On Love (age 16)

It feels like --
Like a song.
I hear it sough
through the wheat.
Like watching you walk away
under the moonlight
and feeling priviledged
just to hold you
with my eyes.
Like the stars dying
over our midnight tryst,
clouds and nothing else
covering our bodies.

On Love (age 22)

It's more simple
than I thought.
An easy choice.
A frission of a
whisper along my spine:
*I love you so much
I think I'm gonna die.*

It's more beautiful
than I thought.
A joyous dance.
A skittering light
speeding through my soul:
*I love you so much
I can never grow old.*

It's more real
than I thought.
A quiet conviction.
A soaring yearning
exploding in my heart:
*I love you so much
And we'll never part.*

On Peace (age 10)

Inside of me
there's a place I go
a place I see
belongs to me.
What is it?
I don't know.

On Peace (age 16)

Life is too quick;
we tumble through it
like clowns in a circus.
And yet,
when I'm with you,
everything goes still
like a lake, silver tinted,
reflecting the clouds --
as I reflect your passion
and turn it to peace.

On Peace (age 22)
(some think this is the last poem he wrote. it was found in the breast pocket of his uniform after his death.)

Eternity slips out a long grey hand.
Invites the embrace.
A whisper of life sings through me.
And for a moment,
For a moment everything is right between us,
For a moment there is no fear or pain.
I let the love shine out,
Let it dance across your face,
And I know,
I know,
At last,
The meaning of the words
"Do not worry about tomorrow
For tomorrow will take care of itself."
I sink down slowly into peace,
and love enfolds me.
I embrace eternity.

On War (age 10)

Guns bang in the woods.
I look into the sky,
want to know
where the fighting is.

On War (age 16)

"It is fitting and sweet
to die for one's country."
Horace said the words
long ago, and here
I echo them. On this
July Fourth my eyes
are wet with patriotic duty.
I vow. I vow.
If my country is ever in need,
I vow to not be the last,
I will not shrink from war.
I will be the first in the sky,
the first to defend my America,
my home of the brave,
my land of the free.

On War (age 22)

The times have broken me.
I sit idle in my skin,
while one I love
follows his heart.
Into battle. I gaze,
fragile-feeling,
after him as he leaves.
Cold. I stand with both feet
firmly anchored to the ground,
to keep from running after him.
Be safe, Rafe. Be safe.
And my breath catches.

On Heroism (age 10)

Why is it that
men can be heroes,
come home,
and the world
forgets them?
Why?

On Heroism (age 16)

On Heroism (age 22)

We're all fragile,
broken mortals whimpering
our way through time.

We're all wounded,
heartstruck warriors struggling
our way through pain.

We're all shattered,
aching souls yearning
our way through life.

We're all heroes,
women, men, living
our way through war.

END