A Goodbye, A Promise and Reflections
By Gennie Seaview.
As the rifle volley from the honor guard ended, it seemed to reverberate around Arlington National Cemetery. A baby started to cry, almost as though she knew that she would never know her father. Anne Crane, still standing, held her baby daughter even closer, her right hand still placed over her heart as the bugler started to play ‘Taps”(1). Beside her, her eight year old son, Lee, still stood to attention, his hand placed over his heart as well.
The mid July sun caught the tears that streamed down her face as she stared at the casket, it seemed so wrong that it should shine so bright on such a heartbreaking day and eyes were crying floods of tears.
As the bugler finished, the naval chaplain asked the family to be seated. Anne looked to her son (who was the image of his father), sitting beside her as he watched the casket team start to fold the flag that had lain on Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Crane’s casket. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, he was trying to be brave and not cry in front of his mother, he was the man of the family now.
As Lee sat there watching, he thought back to two things that happened before his father was killed. The first, was as Lee was holding his baby sister, his father had asked him to promise that he would always look after and be there for his baby sister Jeannie and tell her that he loved her and she should follow her dreams, like he should, whatever their Mom told them. Lee replied that he could tell her himself, but his father just replied, “Promise me Lee, it’s important to me to know that you will let her know that and that she will always be my little girl. Also do the same for your Mom.”
“Yes Dad,” Lee said, “But you will be able to do that yourself when you are home, or when you phone.” His father hugged him and Jeannie and held them tightly.
The second, was the last words that his father had said to him as he left them on that fateful day. Before his sister arrived, his father would always say, ‘Look after your Mom till I get back Lee,’ as he and his mother watched him leave with his duffle to go back to sea. But when he went back to sea a couple of months or so after Jeannie had been born, he told him, “Don’t forget Lee, look after your Mom and baby sister, promise to keep them safe for me and always be there for them, you’re the man of the family now”, he never said “till I get back,” again he hugged Lee tightly and kissed him on the top of his head, before turning and kissing his wife and baby daughter goodbye. His father turned and picked up his duffle and walked through the navy yard gate. Once through he stopped and turned to wave to his family for what would be the last time. Lee shuddered at that thought as tears filled his eyes again. When he was older, Lee often wondered if his father had a premonition that he would not be coming back to them.
The voice of the officer in charge of the casket team, brought Lee back to the present. He watched as the casket team still stood at attention at the graveside, as the officer in charge then presented the folded flag to the naval chaplain, who came to the front of his mother and knelt down to present her with the folded flag that had covered her beloved husband's casket and said;
“On behalf of the President of the United States, The United States
Navy, and a grateful nation, please accept this flag as a symbol of our
appreciation for your loved one’s honorable and faithful service.” (2)
Anne Crane mouthed and nodded her thanks, as the officer gave a slow salute. Then the Arlington Lady(3) approached to speak to her and Lee and presented them both with cards of condolence (along with ones for Jeannie, for when she was old enough), on behalf of the service chief and the lady herself. As she held the flag and cards on her lap, her tears flowed even more, as Lee put his small hand on his mother’s and squeezed it.
“Don’t worry Mom, I will look after you and baby Jeannie now, just like I promised Dad I would,” Lee reassured her with quivering lips, as he fought back the sobs he could feel rising in his heart. The tears still flowed from his eyes though, he just could not stop them.
As they left they each placed a single flower on the casket and had their own private moment one last time with Benjamin Crane, husband, lover, father and naval officer.
Lee placed his hand on top of the casket, tears in his eyes to say his goodbye.
“Goodbye Dad, we miss you so much already; but don’t worry, I will look after and be there for Mom and baby Jeannie, just like I promised you.
When I’m old enough, I will go to Annapolis just like you did and help stop the bad people that took you away from us.”
He kissed the top of his father's casket, stepped back, stood to attention and saluted, just like he had seen his father do so often. “Love you Dad.”
Anne Crane swallowed hard as she looked on as Lee stood back and saluted, she kissed her baby daughter’s forehead and whispered to her, “Jeannie, I feel your brother will be just like your father. He will always do the right thing, even to the point of the ultimate sacrifice and that’s what I am afraid of.”
She felt a small hand take hers and looked down to her side.
“Mom, are you ready, the car’s are waiting for us.” Lee asked, still with tear filled eyes.
“Yes Lee, I’m coming,” and Lee led his mother and baby sister to the waiting car, as Anne Crane thought to herself, ‘Yes Lee, you certainly are your Father’s son’.
Twenty-one years later.
On a beautiful sunny late May Spring day, two figures, wearing the uniforms of naval officers, stood to the front of a headstone.
“Dad, I’d like to present to you one of the navy's newest commissioned officers. Ensign Jeannie Crane, who would've thought it and she was the one who got the Dixie Cup Hat(4) at the Plebes(5) Herndon Monument climb(6). Did we tell you that during her Plebe year?”.
“Well, I had to keep up the Crane tradition Lee, told you I would do it, just like you and Dad did,” Jeannie looked at her big brother with a big grin.
Lee put his arm around his kid sister’s shoulders and smiled at her.
“Bet Dad never thought you would end up in the navy as well Bubbles (his nickname for her), let alone get the Dixie Hat!”
“Well, guess we both inherited the love of the sea and the Crane tenacity, it's in our blood. It’s a shame Mom didn’t give you her blessing at first though Lee, it was always the navy or bust with you.”
“Can’t blame her though Jeannie, Dad’s death hit her really hard, that’s why we moved inland. Mom just couldn’t bear to be near the sea for a long time, though it was a terrorist attack at the yard that killed him. She wouldn’t have his Medal of Honor on display with his flag for a long time, as you know, it reminded her of what happened to Dad and it hurt too much.
Anyway, I only had to wait an extra year until I was eighteen to go to the academy. I didn’t have an ace up my sleeve like you did, to get Mom to sign for me to go at seventeen.”
“Mom still probably wouldn’t of signed if you hadn’t spoken to her Lee.” Jeannie smiled at him, then passed the flowers to Lee and she bobbed down. She poured the water into the vase from the bottle that she had brought with her, then Lee passed her the flowers and she arranged them into the vase. Before she stood back up, she kissed her fingers and placed them on their father’s name where it was etched on the headstone.
“Love you Dad. Hope I make you proud.”
Lee watched his sister, he was so proud of her and what she had achieved and he was sure their father would be. He thought how hard it had been after they lost their father. Their mother struggled to accept his death, especially having two young children and being so close to the sea didn’t help as she blamed it and the navy for it, so she moved her family inland.
For a while he thought his sister would follow a career in professional figure skating after her sporting career in it (like their mother) but she always had other plans; To go to the naval academy in Annapolis and become a naval officer like her father and big brother.
As soon as Jeannie could walk, their mother took her to the ice rink to start teaching her to skate. She hoped by doing that she would never want to join the navy like Lee wanted to do, as she was afraid that she would lose them both, like she had lost her husband. She herself had competed at national level, but an injury had stopped her going for the big titles and her dream of the Olympics, instead she became a show skater and that’s where she had met their father.
As Jeannie stood back up, Lee once again put his arm around her. She laid her head on his shoulder.
“You okay Bub’s?”
“Mmm, just wish I had known him. I know you and Mom and the Grampies told me all about him, but it’s not the same, at least you knew him and had cuddles off him, if only for a few short years. I only have photos and other people's memories of him”
“Just remember he knows you and will always be with us in our hearts...and I know I’m not Dad, but I will always be there for you”.
“I know Lee...and...and I know it’s hard for you and Mom as well, even now. Wish she could of made today as well, shame my orders came through so quick. Lucky you were still at the yard, so you could come with me.”
“I couldn’t be more proud of you and to be here to tell Dad. He would be so proud of you as well, all grown up and becoming an officer”. Lee took his arm from his sister’s shoulders and took a couple of steps back, Jeannie followed Lee in taking a couple of steps back.
Lee, in his best Lieutenant Commander’s voice gave the order. “Ensign Crane, Aten-hut,”
Jeannie came to attention, as did Lee. They then saluted their father’s grave in unison, then came back to attention. Lee gave the order ‘dismissed’ and they both relaxed.
They both said goodbye to their father and turned to head back to Lee’s car and the start of the next chapter of their lives, not knowing what or where the future would take them.
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Author's notes.
I used the Arlington National Cemetery's website for references 1,2 & 3, to find out the order of a military funeral there and also about the Arlington Ladies. There is a very moving video on there explaining the day .
For reference 4, 5 & 6, I used the naval academy in Annapolis website for the info about the Herndon Monument Climb.
The Plebes have to work together and climb the monument and replace the “Dixie” cup hat with an Upperclassman Hat to earn the rank of Fourth Class Midshipmen (2nd year students) and no longer classed as being Plebes.