I am what you were,
I didn't see the struggle,
I didn't know what it was to make ends meet,
I didn't know how it felt to have mouths to feed,
Little eyes looking at me,
Little ears listening,
Impressionable minds
to be molded,
Forgive me Father,
once I knew not,
though I thought I knew it all.
* * *
Child,
Be not so scared,
Be not so frail,
Be not so silent,
Be not so pale.
Watch,
Listen,
Laugh,
Be more than I,
and my father
before me.
I didn't see the struggle,
I didn't know what it was to make ends meet,
I didn't know how it felt to have mouths to feed,
Little eyes looking at me,
Little ears listening,
Impressionable minds
to be molded,
Forgive me Father,
once I knew not,
though I thought I knew it all.
* * *
Child,
Be not so scared,
Be not so frail,
Be not so silent,
Be not so pale.
Watch,
Listen,
Laugh,
Be more than I,
and my father
before me.
WOW! I think most adult men could relate to this. Fabulous.
ReplyDeleteWell thank you (a lot)!
ReplyDeleteHow strong and how true..amazing words.
ReplyDeleteStrong poem, with a lot of neat imagery. Really enjoyed reading this thoughtful expression of yours.
ReplyDeleteparenting is almost accidental, isn't it, each of us a child on our own journey.
ReplyDeleteyour urge in the second part bends the heart.))
xo
erin
Very meaningful. As Fathers we may not always realize that every thing we do is watched and learned. Awesome words that ring so true!
ReplyDeleteyour first line reminds me of that reminder of mortality that used to go on some gravestones -- sum quod eris, i am what you will be --
ReplyDeletejust minutes ago, i heard someone pause thoughtfully in conversation and remark, "i was just about to say something ... but then i realized the words would have been my mother's..." and what a strange moment that is, around forty or so, when you first hear your father's or mother's words coming from your own mouth!
we turn into our parents, our children turn into us ... we are all part of the cycle, whether we realize it now or only much later ... sometimes, i think, it is our very attempts to separate ourselves from our parents that make us so similar to them ...
Quite evocative, especially the Father and Child poem. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete