What I miss now is not the dark
it’s the light,
the cone of light from a table lamp,
my father sitting at the plain deal table
paying the bills in a shuffle of papers.
I see him drinking a cup of hot steamy coffee
staring out at the back yard—
it’s a September night
and I have to get up for school,
but I watch him—
running his hands through his hair
sipping the coffee,
as if he hears a kind of song
out there in the night’s dark,
a music only he remembers.
The night’s coolness
the sound of crickets
and the freights slowing
for the North Side loading dock—
helps him forget the bills, the work.
For a few moments
he sings the song to himself
and he’s far away.
Praise the early fall dark,
praise the cool night
that lets my father daydream,
singing his own song again.
Praise my father for the things
he gave up and lost,
and could not get back.
Praise song for my father
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
The conclave that begins next Wednesday to elect a successor for Pope Francis is the first in 46 ½ years for which the Vatican hasn’t ordered a set of cassocks from the two best-known papal tailors.
Papabile: How do conclave watchers come up with their lists of the next pope—and should we trust them?
The people of God see the bishop of Rome as a teacher, but they also unquestionably see him as a father.
Since the death of Pope Francis, lists of his possible successors have proliferated on social media and in newspapers. Should you trust them?