Sarah Flanigan - Poetry Simply Put

Dear Dad,

You’ve been gone a long time now. I still miss you. Obviously. We were the best of friends. Two peas in a pod. I was the chip off the old block. Much to Mom’s dismay. But maybe she didn’t really mind that much. Maybe secretly it made her proud that I loved you so. Maybe it assured her that I would grow up to be my own self - my own me.

So many things remind me of you. The early morning smell of coffee, deep and rich. Eyes, the color of the sky, backlit with sunshine. Strong, competent hands that know how to make things and fix things and hold onto things. A wink, a nod, that twinkle that says, “I understand.”

My memories aren’t the story or the words but the things that held me captive. That goofy grin of yours that I stole and made my own. Your proud exclamation that you were a hillbilly. The crook I snuggled into when I was tired or scared. The sips of beer I got for being ‘your girl.’ The collection of bows and arrows and rifles that hung on your wall. CB radios and old cars. Cowboy art and solving puzzles. You ground steel for a living but sowed seeds of curiosity in your kids. Your wisdom. Your kindness. Your papa-bear gruffness that could never hide your heart. All now, part of my heart, my being.

I just want to say, thanks - for always being there -for being my dad, my cowboy, my friend. For never giving up on me.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad.

All my love,

Sarah