Joseph P. DiMino Poet Free verse

Thinking of Dad

Well, I guess I’m finally that cranky
old Slow Poke: the one who does
25 in a 35—the one who rolls up
his driver’s window, when you pull
alongside with your rock-n-roll
blaring.  The one who always signals
the same direction whether turning
right or left. The one who keeps the kid’s 
ball when it flies in his front yard attacking 
the roses--he talks to them, and God alone 
can decipher their colorful language. 

But the one who also limps from an old 
war injury, the reason why we are not all
speaking German, and high stepping in 
Bone-crushing boots. No Rockettes
do I speak of. No smiles from that merciless
Chorus Line. He was also the generation
who dropped the bomb--the big one-- 
and had lived 50 years with that fateful 
decision. “It was the right thing to do…
them or us” repeated through the decades 
of nightmares. War is something most young 
people only write songs about—protest against...
smoke a joint and have a beer afterwards….
While brave young men and women
leave limbs on the battlefield to protect
the right for so many to be thankless
fools….

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Caren Krutsinger June 2, 2020 at 1:50 AM I dare say the "thankless fools" part reminds me of the Viet Nam War; for as a nation we were so disrespectful for those who served and lost their limbs and lives. So totally true. Well done. Joseph P. DiMino June 3, 2020 at 9:33 AM Will we ever learn?--I lament. I am no fan of war...but, I have a Vietnamese friend, now living in this country, with two children in college who will tell you it was worth it. Though a high price for all. Perhaps too high for some. I get it.

Geoffrey Brewer May 16, 2020 at 12:03 PM Your thoughtful, intelligent (means I agree!) and sensitive writing expresses so much of the folly of life in which we miss the chance, in youth, to learn from and value the experience of an earlier generation. Perhaps it will always be so, but maybe some younger ones will learn from such effective writing as this. Well done, Joe. Joseph P. DiMino May 18, 2020 at 12:41 PM Hi Geoffrey; thank you for the continued support. We can only hope they do. But much of what we learn in life we feel a need to experience firsthand. Seems to be the way, regardless of the perils. Blessings my friend!

Panagiota Romios May 13, 2020 at 10:49 AM A great tribute to your Dad and the courage he had, Joe! I am impressed with this and making it a FAV! I know you will not mind.)) Like you, in many ways, as I age, I get to be more like my parents. Isn't life wonderful? Oh, in San Francisco, they spit on men in uniform! Sad and ignorant. Call them Nanes, too! Panagiota xxoo Joseph P. DiMino May 13, 2020 at 1:53 PM Hi Panagiota; thank you. Amazing how smart our parents become when we get older. Or how stupid and trivial we realize we are. My father was a lifelong Democrat. He would be shocked to see the Anti American slim buckets his party has become. You would hope we had learned something over the past 2000 years. Going back to square one instead.