Blue-Tail Fly

1864, Dear Mother

46 1864 Dear Mother, Should I have left war to father alone? Mustn’t Johnny go for a soldier? Should I have kept to farm? How I long for the pale hands of my sisters like meadow butterflies upon my shoulders whose wings I took stern joy in pinching. Mother, you will not see Father again, and I will not see him soon. It may bring you relief to know I have been brought to humbling ground. The righteous foot I laid upon you and my sisters, the rancorous voice full of whiskey pride, are both gone. You did warn me against the rush toward the company of men, yet how I tired of crinoline rustle. They are sending me home. Your Loving Son, _____________ ...