I Stood Under A Clear Blue Sky Today

I stood under a clear blue sky today
on a tarmac
at an Air Force base
waiting for the return
of a nineteen-year old soldier

I stood under a clear blue sky today
with a grieving mother
a mourning father
a broken sister
aunts and uncles
and a host of young adults
stunned at the loss of a friend

I stood under a clear blue sky today
where bikers who rode in escort
carried flags in silence
and soldiers in clean blue uniforms
carried a flag-covered coffin
to a hearse
so as to conclude the long journey
home

I stood under a clear blue sky today
looks of disbelief or grim acceptance
on every face
people saluting
as we climbed back into our cars

contemplating

how a day could be so beautiful
while a war waged
half a world away
produces such ugliness

They stood under a clear blue sky today
students at Apollo
students at the Middle School
students at the High School
where he once was a student
lining the street

They stood under a clear blue sky today
motorists who pulled over
weeping in the sunlight
covering their heart with their hand
remembering another who serves
or another day with another flag-draped coffin
or one who never came come

They stood under a clear blue sky today
the young and the old
stiff from the long ride down and back
appreciative of the respect paid
to the one they love
by a community
who wished to share their grief

We stood under a clear blue sky today
and prayed a closing prayer
Jesus' prayer
which asks for forgiveness for the way we hurt others
while also calling us to forgive others who hurting
so that earth might be as it is in heaven

I stood under a clear blue sky today
wanting to hug my sons
for trips to go bowling
or games of King of the Mountain
quickly fade into yesterdays
where we once stood
under a clear blue sky