A Homecoming

Carlene was a blonde little girl
Who lived at the end of my block
And spent the most of her summer days
Watching the hands of the clock.

Every day at the strike of noon
She ran outside to her deck
To search for a sign of her Dad there
Coming home from his newest of treks.

But day after day her mother came
And carted the girl away
Whispering in the little girl's ear
"Not today Carly, not today."

But still the girl would watch at the door
For her Daddy to turn the corner
And everyday she prayed and prayed
For Daddy to return to his daughter.

Her mother hid behind the door
And spied on the sad little child
Waiting for a time to tell her the truth
That would destroy her curious smile.

So again the mother would go to the child
And kissed her little girl's palm
"Honey, today is still not the day,
Today your Daddy's still gone."

"But he's coming home soon, right?"
She would ask her mother.
"Right, honey, he's coming soon,"
She wouldn't say anything other.

The girl started school and days would pass
And still no sign at the door
And little by little the girl would wonder
Why her Daddy made her wait more.

The neighbors whispered behind cupped hands
"He's a runaway, a deadbeat"
Yet everyday on the porch she sat
As the summer would lose its heat.

When the leaves had all fallen and the world was stained red
Our middle school hosted a dance
A dance to celebrate daddies and daughters
And to let the little girls prance.

In a dress of pure white and her pale pink shoes
Carlene would wait at the door
She would watch the corner at the end of the block
As the rain had started to pour.

She would attend the dance alone again,
Soaked to the bone from the rain
While the mean girls all pried for answers
Their curiosity, wild and untamed.

"Where is your Daddy today, Carly?
I do not see him here.
Did he leave you here all by yourself?
Or has he yet to appear?"

"Come on Carly, tell us,
We all know it's true
Your Daddy has abandoned you
He hates you like we do."

"He's coming, I promise,"
She told the other girls,
"He'll be here any second,
And bring me rubies and pearls."

"You're dad isn't coming home today,
And no one thinks he will.  
We all know he ditched you and your mom,
Even if you deny it still."

"Daddy IS coming home to me someday
Even if you don't believe it.
You don't know anything about him," She cried.
Not at all, not even a bit."

The other dads looked on in silence,
And whispered to themselves
About a Dad who could not do anything
Or care for anyone but himself.

The daughters and dads, without any proof
Had already made up their minds
About someone who couldn't fight their harsh words,
A character that's still undefined.

Her mother stood silent in the back of the gym
Waiting for the return of her daughter
And to go home to cradle and comfort her
As she heals from relentless word slaughter.

The little girl cried and cried out her heart
All the way to their old house
And her little play-makeup that had once been so neat
Now dripped down to stain her new blouse.

"Daddy, where are you?" She cried out into the rain
"Why won't you just come home?
Why don't you stop this pain inside me?
Why did you leave us alone?

Why did you leave us for so far away?
When is the day you'll come back?
What makes you want to be so far from here?
What is it that Mom and I lack?"

Her mother stood in the shadows behind her
Watching in tears from the doorway
As the little girl slid down onto the porch
While her mother sought for the right way.

To explain how her father that she barely remembered,
Had not really wanted to leave
But had been called to duty in a faraway place,
Leaving his daughter to grieve.

So she cradled the girl in the pouring rain,
And whispered, "Let me tell you a story
Of where your Daddy ventures in places unknown
And of how he obtained his great glory.

His battalion has marched from near and far
And has traveled all over the world
Just to save all the poor innocent people
Like other little boys and girls.

He is an American fighter pilot
For his battalion, Texas 82,
It had always been his dream to fly
Until, of course, came you.

He had never wanted to leave our side,
And then again we never are far apart
Because he has left us pieces behind
And will always be in your heart.

But before he departed on his trek anew
He left for you a letter,
But I'll keep it safe for a while longer
Until your reading gets better."

Looking up at her mother with red little eyes,
The young girl heaved a great sigh,
"When he does come home from his tales," she vowed
I want it to be a surprise."

Her mother just smiled and whispered in her ear
"But I have a secret before you go,
He will be home soon, sooner than you think.
But that is everything that I know."

Now Carly would wait, despite her vow,
Where she thought no one would see
On the second floor terrace way up high,
Imagining where he could be.

In her eyes he soared high,
Like an eagle in flight
Saving all those that were innocent
And escaping in the night.

Finally, as snow fell
On the once burning land
A car turned the corner,
A long darkened van.

The car turned the corner
At the end of the block,
Leaving the neighbors in awe,
Giving us all a shock.

"He's home, he's home"
Carly shouted to the earth
And she dashed to the car,
Not knowing the hearse.

The driver saluted the naive little girl
Than turned on his heel to the Mom
And in three curt words he had explained it all
Three simple words, "A Road-side Bomb."

The little girl wandered around the van
Pressing her palms to the glass
Shaking with excitement, not understanding,
She whispered, "Let Daddy pass."

With a nod to the woman,
Who was lost in despair,
He opened the door
To reveal nothing there.

"Where is he?" Carly cried
Peering in at the basket
Not even realizing
What could be in the casket.

With a tug and a thunk,
Out the box slid,
And slowly the cadet,
Now opened the lid.

The little girl stared,
At the body so still,
She said not a word,
And felt not a chill.

Leaning down to his face,
She inspected it with care,
Then leaned to his forehead,
And gently kissed his soft hair.

"Welcome home Daddy, welcome home!
I know you'll sleep well.
But when you wake from your dreams,
Great stories you'll tell."