Poems About Fathers and Grandfathers Ii

Poems about Fathers and Grandfathers II All Things Galore by Michael R. Burch for my grandfathers George Edwin Hurt Sr. and Paul Ray Burch, Sr. Grandfather, now in your gray presence you are somehow more near and remind me that, once, upon a star, you taught me wish that ululate soft phrase, that hopeful phrase! and everywhere above, each hopeful star gleamed down and seemed to speak of times before when you clasped my small glad hand in your wise paw and taught me heaven, omen, meteor . . . Attend Upon Them Still by Michael R. Burch for my grandparents George and Ena Hurt With gentleness and fine and tender will, attend upon them still; thou art the grass. Nor let men’s feet here muddy as they pass thy subtle undulations, nor depress for long the comforts of thy lovingness, nor let the fuse of time wink out amid the violets. They have their use? to wave, to grow, to gleam, to lighten their paths, to shine sweet, transient glories at their feet. Thou art the grass; make them complete. Be that Rock by Michael R. Burch for my grandfather George Edwin Hurt Sr. When I was a child I never considered man’s impermanence, for you were a mountain of adamant stone: a man steadfast, immense, and your words rang. And when you were gone, I still heard your voice, which never betrayed, "Be strong and of a good courage, neither be afraid ..." as the angels sang. And, O!, I believed for your words were my truth, and I tried to be brave though the years slipped away with so little to save of that talk. Now I'm a man? a man ... and yet Grandpa ... I'm still the same child who sat at your feet and learned as you smiled. Be that rock. I don't remember when I wrote this poem, but I will guess around age 18 in 1976. The verse quoted is from an old, well-worn King James Bible my grandfather gave me after his only visit to the United States, as he prepared to return to England with my grandmother. I was around eight at the time and didn't know if I would ever see my grandparents again, so I was heartbroken?destitute, really. Fortunately my father was later stationed at an Air Force base in Germany and we were able to spend four entire summer vacations with my grandparents. I was also able to visit them in England several times as an adult. But the years of separation were very difficult for me and I came to detest things that separated me from my family and friends: the departure platforms of train stations, airport runways, even the white dividing lines on lonely highways and interstates as they disappeared behind my car. My idea of heaven became a place where we are never again separated from our loved ones. And that puts hell here on earth. Keep Up by Michael R. Burch Keep Up! Daddy, I'm walking as fast as I can; I'll move much faster when I'm a man... Time unwinds as the heart reels, as cares and loss and grief plummet, as faith unfailing ascends the summit and heartache wheels like a leaf in the wind. Like a rickety cart wheel time revolves through the yellow dust, its creakiness revoking trust, its years emblazoned in cold hard steel. Keep Up! Son, I'm walking as fast as I can; take it easy on an old man. Reflex by Michael R. Burch for Jeremy Some intuition of her despair for her lost brood, as though a lost fragment of song torn from her flat breast, touched me there... I felt, unable to hear through the bright glass, the being within her melt as her unseemly tirade left a feather or two adrift on the wind-ruffled air. Where she will go, how we all err, why we all fear for the lives of our children, I cannot pretend to know. But, O!, how the unappeased glare of omnivorous sun over crimson-flecked snow makes me wish you were here. Father’s Back, Mother's Smile by Michael R. Burch There never was a fonder smile than mother's smile, no softer touch than mother's touch. So sleep awhile and know she loves you more than "much." So more than "much, " much more than "all." Though tender words, these do not speak of love at all, nor how we fall and mother's there, nor how we reach from nightmares in the ticking night and she is there to hold us tight. There never was a stronger back than father's back, that held our weight and lifted us, when we were small, and bore us till we reached the gate, then held our hands that first bright mile till we could run, and did, and flew. But, oh, a mother's tender smile will leap and follow after you! Originally published by TALESetc The Desk by Michael R. Burch for Jeremy There is a child I used to know who sat, perhaps, at this same desk where you sit now, and made a mess of things sometimes.I wonder how he learned at all... He saw T-Rexes down the hall and dreamed of trains and cars and wrecks. He dribbled phantom basketballs, shot spitwads at his schoolmates' necks. He played with pasty Elmer's glue (and sometimes got the glue on you!). He earned the nickname "teacher's PEST." His mother had to come to school because he broke the golden rule. He dreaded each and every test. But something happened in the fall? he grew up big and straight and tall, and now his desk is far too small; so you can have it. One thing, though? one swirling autumn, one bright snow, one gooey tube of Elmer's glue... and you'll outgrow this old desk, too. Originally published by TALESetc A True Story by Michael R. Burch for Jeremy Jeremy hit the ball today, over the fence and far away. So very, very far away a neighbor had to toss it back. (She thought it was an air attack!) Jeremy hit the ball so hard it flew across our neighbor's yard. So very hard across her yard the bat that boomed a mighty "THWACK! " now shows an eensy-teensy crack. Originally published by TALESetc Keywords/Tags: father, fathers, father son, father daughter, fathers day, family, grandfather, grandparents, grandson, granddaughter, grandchild