Will there be any good men left once our fathers have gone on,
with their calloused hands and faded eyes
and love that swells up like water behind a levee,
to the point where it overflows, leaving the surrounding landscape forever changed.
Men who show their emotion by putting dinner on the table,
clothes on the body and a roof over head.
Will there be another man like my father?
Could I be a man like my father?
I look in the mirror, weigh and evaluate.
I am not that man who never blinked before he pulled the trigger
but I have just as much love
only mine sits a little closer to the surface.
Integrity: I wonder if we will only read about the word
in books about our fathers
or if one of us will wear the word
tattooed on our sleeve for all the world to see.
I hope one day I can love like my father,
that I can look my children in the eyes
and remain silent with them knowing all the love
that is being shared without being spoken.
