Flying Man

Do you remember Ed

who held you on his hip

in church one Easter?

I cherish the image

of you and this man,

who in his youth

had held it together

for two tours of Vietnam,

and for a brief moment

shared our world.

Some guys weren’t so lucky:

like the grunt who lost it

one day and had to be

choppered from the base

for everyone’s safety.

And as the Huey sped

over The Mekong Delta

he calmly stood up

and stepped through the door

at a thousand feet

before anyone could grab him.

Ed was on the patrol

that found him next morning,

planted in the ground

feet first and standing upright,

spectacles slightly askew,

with a quizzical expression

on his face.

John H Davies

4th April 2011