Father's Day Poetry

Strolling across Kmart lot
Sunglasses shield your eyes
Sun shines down
Bald head
Grinning
Fast forward
Driving lessons
Abandoned A & P
Getting pulled over
Explaining to the cop
Why you were indulging
While I was learning to back up
Cook-outs, houseboat
Green olives
Fishing
Jumping off the roof of the boat
Fish fries
Company
Making my first real money
Acme Brass
The library
Memories run together like
Paint on a mural
Swimming within each other's
Subconscious
While cringing with embarrassment
Money sent for college
Mini-bike in yard
Family reunions
And father-daughter dance
Your cigars
Then the pipe
Proud and noble
Fought in Korea
Silence between us
German Shepherd
Sons who abandon
Then reappear
Broken glass
And funny stories
Eight-track tapes
Erased
Yet savored
Miss Lila and the interview
Your age
And your frailty
From the 70s to now
And back again
Seeing you age
40 to 75
Talks change from lakes, allowances
To retirement and what's left to do
The pier, seagulls, pelicans
A bird named Charlie
Holds the key.

T.R.
5-19-10