Cry like a man

Cry like a man, I told my son.
Leave nothing unfelt. 
Love is scarce and may yet run
Leaving you nought but a pelt.
Be brave, for true courage is when
You act whilst filled with fear. 
I told him such again and again
Hoping he would hear.

And so I watched my son in spirit grow
As his body became that of a man. 
Curiosity his intellect & knowledge did grow
And I was his biggest fan. 

Until that day-- Dad, this hurts
But I was unconcerned. 
In men's hubris, fate flirts,
In my son's body, pain burned.
For two days we waited for those damned stones to pass, 
For two needless days he suffered. 
And on day three we went to the ER 
Knowing the pain was the tougher. 
I thought this is ok, everything's alright
Even as we waited all afternoon
As the sun fell late and approached the night,
We got abdominal images laced in black festoon. 
Metastatic carcinoma, and I felt my blood run cold.
No known source, though the technician sought
Through all the organs, to see which would hold
The source, the primary, an evil bolus blot.
Go home, she said, and take this for pain. 
I steeled myself strong and firm. 
Though inside I crumbled, weak and wane,
For my son's fears and mine, I was herm.

I drove back numb, screaming inside, 
In the silence we barely spoke. 
Later when he fled this nightmare to hide, 
I clutched at my wife and broke.

Copyright © Matthew Wetter | Year Posted 2025

Please Login to post a comment