A Father Remembered
By Dominic C. Turner

For dad; Even though my thoughts seldom wander to you, I love you still.

I remember his gray hat,
    And his black rubber duckies.
I remember his mugs of coffee and glasses of cola.
I remember his stubbly beard and howling laughter.
I remember his serious claim that "I could beat Michael Jordan,"
    And his wild theories on the U.S. government.
I remember his smiles, hard yet loving, happy to see his children succeed
Yet I cannot help but recall the dying breaths I did not see.
Even before his tired eyes, so tired,
My own wretched eyes having seen the weight of a life he didn't choose, all on     him
Somehow the pain of his life and the end thereof intermingles with the happiness he so rarely possessed
Allowing only for confused tears and a hurting heart.
Nonetheless I am happy to remember him
For fathers are to be remembered,
    And he was a father.
He was my father -
    And a good one at that. -DCT

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