Michelle Faulkner Poet Free verse

Notes About The Poem

I Am the Daughter

My father is not the biological father of my siblings
So I am the bridge, I am the link in the family
I, alone, carry his blood, so it is
all the more poignant, and painful that
I am the daughter who disappoints

I am the daughter who didn't join the Navy
who didn't graduate from college
who didn't marry a military man
who didn't give him a grandson

I am the literature-loving daughter of the man
who can not abide books, the man
with no patience for poetry or art or music (excepting Johnny Cash)
I am the (usually) alcohol-abstaining daughter of the man
who can not seem to show affection without the buzz of beer in him

I live in the land of rain
He has retired to sunnier plains

Still we share the same face
And, for thirty four years, the same last name

I see in me his stubborness
the same silent avoidance of problems and pain
the same wanderlust
the same silly habit of leaving keys in the door
Of hating to wait in airport lounges, in doctor's offices
the same scribbly handwriting
the same distaste for celery and peppers

For better or worse
I am not me
Without him.

7/15/18

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Sigrid Ermine August 10, 2020 at 5:38 AM Exploring poems of yours, Michelle. Full agreement with all comments. A candid account. The set up, details, guilt, discrepancies and similarities inescapable told with rawness and finesse.

Gershon Wolf July 30, 2018 at 7:43 PM I absolutely adore this poem. It's simply a wonderful roller-coast write (ride) of the unbridled truth. And there's nothing finer than a glimpse of the TRUTH, this world of illusion and delusion we inhabit. Bravo! You should be very, very proud of this one, Michelle. Best wishes, Gershon Michelle Faulkner July 31, 2018 at 2:49 PM Now, as an adult, I try to see both sides of the picture, and (try to) avoid being too narrow or shallow-

Bartholomew Williams July 16, 2018 at 9:48 AM Michelle, thank you so much for sharing this introspective, personal, and truly moving piece. I appreciate your candor about your connection with your father. You both have my most sincere best wishes for reconciliation, peace, and happiness. All good things to you. :) Bartholomew Michelle Faulkner July 16, 2018 at 6:23 PM Thank you for your lovely comment - and we still talk, we are just not that close.

Caren Krutsinger July 15, 2018 at 8:58 PM Whoa! Hold the horses. This poem rouses so many feelings in me; I have to tell you I look in the mirror every day, laugh and say "Hi Dad," and see so many things that unite us on a subconscious level. This poem made my heart leap with joy, for the feelings are so heartfelt and real. Michelle Faulkner July 16, 2018 at 6:21 PM You must have a closer relationship with your father than I have with mine-