Diane Locksley Poet Free verse

His Baggage Had a Name

Tara would be the bee in any woman’s bonnet,
incessantly whining, “Buy me this, buy me that.”

Manipulating
     Selfish
          Rude

She knew all the tricks to inflict guilt
in her divorced father who thought he failed her.

Just 12 years old, she’d call at 2 a.m.,
“Daddy, I’m stuck at Walmart.”

Without hesitation, Tom would rush to pick her up,
never suggesting she stayed out too late.

Although she liked to swim in my lake,
at no other time did I see Tara smile.

Just scowls
     Taunts
          Threats

I was touched by Tom’s devotion to his daughter,
but was more than concerned for her future.

After failing seventh grade twice,
she demanded to be home schooled.

I offered to tutor;
she declined.

Tara claimed there were courses on the internet,
so Tom showed his weakness when he agreed.

Tom’s good qualities were many
     Generous
          Reliable
               Kind

It was Tara who drove the wedge between us
and she never did pass seventh grade.

Tom’s baggage only weighed about a hundred pounds,
but he might as well have carried the world on his shoulders.



January 31, 2017

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