LIKE FATHER LIKE SON

a personal experience

"Old man
Look at my life
I'm alot like you were..."
NEIL YOUNG

Dreams unfulfilled
Aspirations extinguished
A promise of talent, wasted
I am now older than you ever were
I have failed even more so
Loveless
Childless
The last of my family's name
Lost in wilderness

I wonder when I was born
Did you want me to take a different path than yours?
Was I suppose to take giant leaps forward in life rather than small steps?
I wonder what your face of disappointment looks like
Do you shed tears of pity for your only son?

It has been a struggle for me since you've been gone
On occasion, I can hear your voice calling out for me to join you from somewhere, someplace beyond this world
But maybe there's more to this life I have yet to see
Maybe...

All the past wounds have healed and I hope someday, somehow we'll meet each other again
But not yet...
Not yet...

Author's Note

The relationship with my father is what could have been or what should have been. Every year that passes I lose another piece of him out of my life

Reviews

[Eve]

I have to say this really took a route I wasn't expecting when I first read the title. I like that though, it's different. With that, I would like to point out the raw emotion in this piece. When I read it I could really feel the pain you feel when you think about your father, and how you feel you've disappointed him. I can emphasize on that aspect, since I seem to only be able to disappoint my own father. Reading this, I also gain some sort of gratitude that my father is still with me, and I still have the chance to make things better. In a way you are really inspiring, but through telling us the pain you go through yourself. This creates a sense of reality, that you've gone through your own hardships, and you're not pretending that the world is perfect and we should just suck it up. Reading this poem gives readers hundreds of emotions flooding their system all at once. I also like how you neutralize this image for your father that you've created. I mean it's clear that you didn't have a very tight relationship with your father, but you still love him. You show your readers that you do have regrets about you dealt with your problems with your father, but you weren't the only one to blame. I really relate to you and get a lot out of this just one piece about you. This poem is really human, I suppose you could say.

[light and ashes]

This is beautiful and heart breaking and also there is something slightly inspirational about this poem. There is a little glimmer of light in it at the end of the tunnel. It's in your eyes. Don't lose sight of it.

[Ahnjolie McKenna]

My apologies... I had neglected to mention in my previous post that I find your poem to be incredibly well written. It touched my heart most tenderly...

Ahnjolie

[Ahnjolie McKenna]

I am as you are... 'loveless, childless and last of the family name." It may seem a sad situation, love...but there is always the belief that tomorrow is my hope for the future. Someone I may love and belong to, children to bless our home, and a family name and history that shall not be forgotten. Be brave, be confident and believe that you deserve to love and be loved by one who shall create a beautiful and protected world for just the two of you. The past cannot be changed, but the future is waiting to be discovered. Sending you many happy thoughts...
Soft smiles for you... Ahnjolie

[Gypsy Warrior Queen]

Childless and the last of a bloodline are never failures and being lost in the wilderness...well that just a journey.I'll leave you with loveless men tell no tales. I love the poem, the sentiment, and the expressions. There should always be...not yet...

[Melissa]

This is so beautifully written. I think we all wonder if we live up to our parents' expectations. My own relationship with my father is a complicated and troubled one, so I am often haunted by what could have been with him. Your poetry really captures the anguish we can feel as we take measure of the life we are living and find that we have somehow fallen short of where we, or others, think we should be. Well done.

[Riddhi]

Actually to tell you the truth I don't have a stable relationship with my father..To be clear , I don't even have any relationship with him..It may sound strange to you but the only feeling that i have for him is that I hate him..Hate might seem a big word but that is the only word that can describe my feelings for him...And actually I am not the one who use this word often..There are certain reasons because of which I have this feelings for me..When I read your writing I can relate with it..Actually the writing turned in a different direction from what I had expected when I started reading it..I liked the way you expressed your feelings..
Keep writing..

[Mari' Emeraude]

What a heartwrenching piece! If your father could only know what a great writer you've become.

[Dave]

I must admit this isn/t what I expected when I started reading. I believe that the relationship I had with both my father and my stepfather satisfied them both. To both of them, I owe much. Thanks for helping me remember.

Take care - Dave

[Chris Shaw]

Neil Young, always enjoyed his music years ago. What I really like about this poem is that its ending is uplifting. Now that the past wounds have healed, there is still time for you to achieve something which you recognise as a success. You convey well to the reader how you have struggled up until now, now its your time. Go for it.

Chris