Happy Father’s Day
Not all Dads
Are the same
The lucky ones
Get to come home
To their children
Each night
And kiss and hug ‘em tight
The sacrificing ones
Who are fighting far away
Carry a picture in their mind
Of the children they left behind
The I-wish-I-could-go-back-in-time-ones
Are sitting in a cell somewhere
Waiting for a buzzer to ring
To signal an open door
So they can walk
Down a row of windows
Until they find the faces
Of their children
Waiting there
The every-other-weekend-ones
Try to make the most of time
And give their children what they want
Instead of what they need
The step-dad-ones
Walk a fine line
To be firm but fair
With the children left
In their considerable care
The absentee-ones
Who never looked back
Who hardened their hearts
And lived for themselves
Have children out there
Who will carry the pain …
“Wasn’t I worth something to you”
The feel-sorry-for-ones
Have their children right there
In front of them
Yet walk on by without a word
No “I love you”
No “I’m proud of you”
No “I want us to spend some time together…”
The slow-footed-ones
Have nothing but time
So they don’t mind waiting awhile
For the phone to ring
Or the door to swing open
To greet grown children,
Grandchildren and all the Greats
The about-to-be-ones
Scared out of their minds
For the first time
They pace the floor
And hold their breath
“Will I be good enough …”
The letting-go-ones
Lay their babies
On a doorstep
And walk away
Hoping for a better life
For the children they’ll
Never know
And the underground-ones
Live on
in the heartbeat of their children,
Grandchildren and great-grandchildren
May the memories be good ones
Until they meet again
TL