History hears great Caesar’s cry:
“Where are my eagles?”
And I, not a Caesar, not a general
Not much just
A human with a warrior’s heart–
I, too, lost my eagle.
It disappeared into beige
And black and poppied fields
Along with truths and riddles
We were asked to unwind
While the moments of our lives
Became years whose names
Were deployments not numbers:
Kabul or Helmand or Kandahar.
Oh, my precious eagle
Somewhere under heaven:
May you be safe.
May you be well.
May you search for and find
The secret, sacred mountain spring
That heals hearts forever
And taste the love my family
Poured into it for you.
-Allegra Jordan, 2021
This poem was inspired by the compassionate tweets of Rebekah Sanderlin.