John William's Homecoming

John William, oh my darlin' boy, the apple of my eye,
Don't go to fight this rich man's war.I fear you'll fall and die.

Oh mother dear, you raised me right, and now, I am a man.
To keep my home and family safe I must do what I can.

I love so well the smell of rain on Carolina pine,
And Daddy's wise and quiet ways, and Jenny's lips of wine,

And well I love your dear sweet face, but Mother, I must go.
I promise when my duty's done, I'll come back home to you.

John William, lean and kiss me, son, so tall now and so brave.
Hold me just one minute more before you leave away.

I'll bless you with each breath I take, and I will nightly pray
God guide your steps and keep you safe, and bring you home, someday.

With one last kiss, John William turned and hugged his brother tight.
"You take good care of them,"he said, and walked on towards the fight.

At Gaines Mill went the battlecry of 1862,
And when the smoke cleared, Johnny lay face down upon the dew,

His young life spilling fast away, his tremblin' lips a'foam,
Noone to hear his dying words, "Please let me make it home"

No message ever came to them, and when the war was over,
His sweetheart, Jenny, broke her troth, and took another lover.

John William's mother prayed for him while months and years were fading,
Her chestnut hair a'silvering, and still, she kept on waiting.

"And where has my John William gone? Has he forgot we love him?
I see him smiling at me sweet each night when I dream of him,

His black hair curling, eyes ashine. He holds his hand out to me,
But when I wake the dream is over, and a strange chill passes through me.

Long years have come and gone since then, covered in Time's embrace.
Noone living now recalls John William's handsome face.

He's slept now for a century beneath a Richmond hill.
Noone took time to mark his grave when he fell at Gaines Mill.

I found his name within a book, "John W. Birch, at Gaines Mill died",
And when I read the entry there, I held my chest and cried.

Great great grandmother, a gift of peace! Your spirit no more must roam.
I've found your darling blackhaired boy. John William has come home.

by Bonnie Burch Worthington

ps My dream now, in this life, is to find my gg uncle's gravesite. I live 80 miles from Richmond and the Gaines Mill battleground. If anyone can help me, I would so appreciate it.