Father's Day ~ Remembering my hero!

Be kind to thy father, for when thou wert young, Who loved thee so fondly as he? He caught the first accents that fell from thy tongue, And joined in thy innocent glee." -- Margaret Courtney ..
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He Cried

He was a strong man,
Never shed a tear,
Solid as a rock
Carried no fear.

He was a tough guy,
A hard working man,
Showed his love by the work of his hands,
Not a man of flowery words,
Nor of many words at all,
And as far as I was concerned,
He was ten feet tall!

I was sure he could carry the world on his shoulders,
Sometimes I think he even tried,
Never a doubt in my mind
That because of this strong man,
Life would be just fine.

Every day after work, I’d greet him at the door,
He’d pick me up and kiss me on the cheek,
There was nothing in the world I valued more,
Than this moment of the day – so sweet.

Years later…
One day after work, he laid down to rest,
He said he felt a "stabbing" pain, deep inside his chest,
We knew it was bad when he didn’t fight,
And the ambulance rushed him off that night.

His heart was opened by that surgery,
And then it began to melt,
With words of kindness and expressions of love,
He finally told us how he felt.

The feisty fighter had a soft side,
He showed that side to mom and me,
In a three way hug that lasted a long time,
And his tear filled words “I love my family”!

The feelings trapped inside began to flow,
In words now, not just deeds,
The size of his heart began to grow,
His spirit was set free.

I’m grateful for the words we shared,
They mean more than one could know,
I always knew how much he cared,
But I’m glad he found the words to show.

He was a strong man
And he made it clear,
That a strong man’s
Not afraid to shed a tear,

He was a strong man
With a gentle side,
The gift he gave me etched precious in my mind -
Was the day my daddy cried.

(written by Lorraine Brown, copyright 2007)