Man Finds Epic 70-Year-Old Love Letter in Toolbox He Bought at an Auction: 'Like Poetry'

In the 1953 letter, Irvin G. Fleming said he hadn’t heard from his beloved in five months following a disagreement — but that he still wanted to marry her

A Michigan man recently discovered an Air Force veteran's love letter from more than seven decades ago inside a toolbox he purchased years prior.

It was 2017 when Rick Trojanowski, of Grand Rapids, purchased an old toolbox at a farm auction, according to FOX affiliate WXMI.

Trojanowski waited a few years to open the box and was astonished by what he found inside: a 70-year-old love letter.

The letter was addressed to Mary Lee Cribbs in Grand Rapids, WXMI reported. It came from Corporal Irvin G. Fleming in San Francisco — more than 2,200 miles away.

Related: Lost 80-Year-Old Letter Finally Delivered After Being Found at an Illinois Post Office: 'Gobsmacked'

“People just don’t write things like that nowadays," Trojanowski told the station. "It’s almost like poetry.”

In the multi-page letter from 1953, Fleming said he hadn’t heard from Mary in five months following a previous disagreement. He apologized and said time was passing slowly for him without hearing from her.

Fleming also said his return home seven months later would be the happiest day of his life and asked Mary to be his wife, something he apparently had asked at least once before.

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Now, Trojanowski is looking for the letter’s owner or one of their relatives. He told WXMI he has tried to “do a little research on Facebook” and “locate some of the people involved” with the letter but has not been successful so far.

Related: Veteran Meets Woman Who Wrote Him a Thank You Letter After 12 Years of Searching: 'We Cried'

Trojanowski did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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