I'll be seeing you 1944

 

 

We'll meet again: The tender farewell kisses of soldiers and their sweethearts at New York's Penn Station before they shipped out to the battlefields of WWII. Lovers torn apart by the fighting during World War II were photographed saying their goodbyes as they faced an unknown future. LIFE magazine photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt captured the tender moments soldiers spent with their beloveds before boarding their trains at New York's Pennsylvania Station to serve their country in the global conflict in 1943. The black and white photographs originally ran in the Valentine's Day issue of LIFE magazine in 1944, as the nation anxiously waited for the return of their loved ones. Now 69 years after the collection was first unveiled, LIFE.com has republished the romantic photographs by the photojournalist, most noted for his picture of the sailor who kissed a nurse on V-J Day in Times Square in 1945. 'Each goodbye is a drama complete in itself, which Eisenstaedt’s pictures movingly tell,' the original magazine article from 1944 read. 'Sometimes the girl stands with arms around the boys’ waist, hands tightly clasped behind. Another fits her head into the curve of his cheek while tears fall onto his coat. Now and then the boy will take her face between his hands and speak reassuringly. Or if the wait is long they may just stand quietly, not saying anything.' 'The common denominator of all these goodbyes is sadness and tenderness, and complete oblivion for the moment to anything but their own individual heartaches.' Embrace: A soldier lovingly pulls his sweetheart close as they share a final moment together before he boards his train Off again: This sailor kisses his girl as he embarks on yet another overseas assignment Unknowns: This distraught woman clings tightly to her lover, fearing for the future as he answers the call of duty Tears: With a gentle touch, this man comforts the woman he leaves behind to wait for him during the war One moment more: This couple calmly wait in their final moments together before their sad separation Until we meet again: This sailor, pictured in 1941, kisses his girl goodbye as he returns to his post after the shocking Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7 KISS ME GOODBYE One of the most intimate human gestures, a kiss can convey greetings, give comfort, express joy, and above all, show love. Gathered from news photos over the past few months, this collection of kisses features playful moments, emotional reunions, public displays of affection, and some pure expressions of love. A tourist poses for a picture with the Sphinx at the Pyramids of Giza in Cairo, Egypt, on October 19, 2011. (Reuters/Jamal Saidi) 2 A couple kisses while standing underneath a tree inside Central Park during a warm day in New York, on March 22, 2012. (Reuters/Lucas Jackson)