To a Lost Flyer
By Bessie Jarvis Payne
In memory of Captain Lee Jarvis Halling
Killed in action – May 5, 1944
Dedicated to his mother
Rose Jarvis Halling
Wings approaching in the sky,
Slowing as they pass me by,
Dipping now in brief goodbye –
O’er this home.
Wings against the azure deep,
Eager flight into the street,
Straining eyes that must not weep –
Till peace is won.
Wings upon the sun-splashed hills
Casting shadows o’er the rills,
Soaring high, as my heart thrills –
Then you’re gone.
Wings above the ocean’s foam
Winging far from friends and home.
Must you never cease to roam–
Dearest one?
Broken wings in downward sweep,
Swiftly be the fate you meet,
Rest now in eternal sleep –
Oh, my son.
(1945)
If the record at Find-a-Grave is correct, he died in Palm Beach County, Florida, which suggests that he died in a training accident. I’m quite sure that that fact wouldn’t have made his loss any less difficult for his mother.
As the names suggest, there was a family tie between the author and the bereaved mother–they were sisters, just two years apart in age.
Thank you, Mark.
Thanks, Mark. You’re right that the particulars of the type of flight he was on wouldn’t make the family’s loss any easier.
“Oh, my son.” So sad.
That was beautiful!