A Father and his Son

A Father and his Son

 

He stands aside and watches,

Amazed at what he sees.

A tiny image of himself,

The offspring of his seed.

 

Before he knows, a year has passed,

His child is now afoot.

Testing, tasting, exploring,

The how, when, where and what.

 

His little one is growing fast,

Already starting school.

The first day is the hardest,

For Dad to play it cool.

 

Anxiety at separation,

Most common, so they say.

For Dad it’s even harder,

To have his son away.

 

But soon he does adjust,

Falling into a routine,

Of school drop off and pick up,

And working in-between.

 

No sooner he can blink,

It’s graduation day,

With college on the horizon,

And no more time to play.

 

The next four years fly by,

In a crazy, hazy whirl,

Now his son is getting married,

To a very lovely girl.

 

Within a year or two,

Another joins the flock,

Dad is suddenly a Grandpa,

Babysitting round the clock.

 

Now the doctor tells him,

He has three months to live,

His body is worn out,

And has nothing left to give.

 

He spends the time remembering,

His life and gracious son,

Until he takes his last breath,

And joins his Dad, beyond.

 

Shirley Petrandis/Copyright/2006

 

Reviews

[KevinS]

I saw this as a featured poem on another site. Understand it received an editors choice award.
No surprise.
Fantastic work!

[fireblossom]

very sweet and very much of the human condition. i am one of those seldom rhyming rebels. but this poem really touched me and the rhythm and rhyme were splendid.

My father just had a kidney removed. This poem touched that issue with me.

Well done!

[A.r. Bazian]

i have never been so touched by a poem... so deep, emotional... plain... and... so true!
techniques are amazing!
i think i'm gonna cry... and i'm not giving complements... this is amazing!