Linda Straub
Homecoming
It was a pink cotton dress
patterned with white daisies,
sleeveless with spagetti straps
that slid off the shoulders
like children who can’t sit still.
It was a navy blue uniform
with seargant’s stripes
and an adjustable belt
anchored on a slim waist,
below the purple heart.
It was a July day in 1969
at a suburban train station
outside of Philadelphia;
no longer “in country”,
now steppin’ on American soil.
It was a white corvair
with red bucket seats
and Dylan on the radio,
each turned up high
and playing for peace.
It was a warrior and his woman
driving by the school yard
where the band played,
but there was no parade–
just two hands exploring.
Linda Straub
***