For WI 3 ‘Breaking Through’
MM 15 ‘Indomitable Spirit’, ‘Rise of a Champion’.
ISN’T IT?
He’d tell me to leave my window
Open just a touch, at night
And don’t draw the curtains tight-shut
Because the air won’t circulate
And leave your bedroom door ajar
So we’ll always be sure you’re safe
I knew Dad had his own good reasons
Not just a case of ‘just in case’
He’d always wear that hat, with the hole
And leave his top button undone
His manners weren’t always perfect
But who was I to question him?
He drank from a cup with no handle
Chipped and broken, from years of use
Just like the plate that he ate from
‘Unhygienic’ I used to think
He forgave all my misdemeanours
And said “You’ll learn from your mistakes”
He got that right; I’m still learning
And mistakes are part of daily life
“Actions are never automatic
It takes thought to provoke each deed”
Words of wisdom from my father
I’ll remember till my dying day
He shaped my thoughts, my dreams; my life
Asking for nothing in return
A loving dad; he had his faults
Just like anybody else
He was a diamond in the rough
Flawed by life’s consistent unfairness
Fractured, fragmented, forsaken
By the forces of fickle fate
Cast out, displaced, relocated
Rejected by the rogue regime
That raped and pillaged his homeland
He showed no anger, bitterness
I’m not certain time healed all these wounds
But as Leonard Cohen once said
“There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in”…Isn’t it?
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Your poem bristles with tragedy and yet, it offers hope of room and time to keep on learning! Very dramatic and softly poignant!
ReplyDeleteWhat an honest and touching bit of writing. It is hard to see life take its toll on a father you love.
ReplyDeleteI had a horrible youth, from orphanage to an abusive household -- abuse from a bitter adoptive mother, and her paranoid schizophrenic mother who lived with us.
The one shining light was my adoptive father. he kept me sane, and helped me get out of the house at 14 -- he stayed in touch and saved my life.
I miss him, as he died too young - heart attack caused by a broken heart.
Didn't mean to digress, but I could feel your love for your father on this piece, and you put me in touch with a few precious memories -- thank you... ;)
this was not only a lovely tribute,, but a fine piece of wisdom all its own... very well done...
ReplyDeleteThanks to:
ReplyDeleteGreyscale Territory; All experiences are an oportunity to learn and understand. Hindsight allows me to say that easily. At the point of impact, it's not so easy to apply reason.
Rob Kistner; The light that never goes out - we all have to have a focal point to guide us through our troubles.
Thank you for sharing this personal information. I hope my piece inspired thoughts that cause us to examine the good and bad in others (as well as ourselves), and draw a balanced opinion.
Paisley; Credit where it is due - the wisdom is inherited.
Time has a way of shaping our views, that a good thrashing couldn't accomplish for a strong-willed child such as I. Enjoyed the reflection, very much!
ReplyDeleteHi Dan, thanks for visiting. It can often take just a few words of wisdom to answer that biggest of questions - Why?
ReplyDelete