Richard Lamoureux | + Follow Poet |
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Two Pieces of Paper and a Photo

She searches  through his remnants
Trying to find her broken pieces
Had she been important to him?
She finds a single piece of yellowed paper
Her name written in his elegant hand
Those hands that had held her once
Strong hands
She had felt safe in those hands
Unaware of his weakness,
his lacking
Why had he left?
She kept looking though drawers and boxes
Feverishly searching for answers
Only one photo
Taken so very long ago
Proof that they had been part of his life
The proof felt like a knife
Those young faces smiling at her
Blissfully unaware of what was to come
Daddy was leaving
He wasn't coming home again
She hands the photo to her sister
There must be more
She keeps searching
Unaware of what was important to him
Wanting more clues
Answers 
Reasons
Another piece of paper
Her sisters name with her children listed underneath
The grandchildren he never got to know 
She can't help wonder
Why were they not enough
And she realizes it was his lacking
It was never theirs
There was nothing they could have done
They could not be better girls
Happier girls
Good enough girls!
He was broken 
Lonely long before them
His remnants scattered
Indecipherable 
She looks at her sisters
They cry together
Sad for the loss of what they did not have
Yet beneath the tears they smile
Holding each other's delicate hands
For they possess a strength he never had
They have stayed together
Loved each other
Carried each other's burdens
Resilient
Loving 
Caring
They have survived
If he had known them
He would have been so proud

Dedicated to and inspired by Bev Smith.

Copyright © Richard Lamoureux | Year Posted 2015

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Anna Hopper Date: 4/2/2015 8:17:00 AM Beautiful! Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 4/2/2015 8:52:00 AM Thanks Anna.

Monterey Sirak Date: 3/21/2015 8:36:00 AM Stunning! The one line "He was broken..lonely long before them" could ease so much unwarranted guilt. Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/21/2015 8:47:00 AM Interestingly, before I clicked on my poem I knew it was you who had commented. Thanks for the kind visit Monterey.

Scott Thirtyseven Date: 3/12/2015 7:24:00 AM Very dramatic, very moving. Written in a way that we take this journey as we read. Well penned poetry. Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/12/2015 8:15:00 AM Thanks Scott,

Casarah Nance Date: 3/11/2015 9:16:00 PM Oh what a story, I felt like I was right there living that moment with them. Nicely done! Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/12/2015 8:15:00 AM Thanks Casarah.

David Meade Date: 3/10/2015 2:06:00 PM Well done my friend . . . a broken man, unspoken love, the tears of searching . . . may we always express our love . . . . 7 Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/11/2015 8:56:00 AM Thanks David. ;0)

Rhonda Johnson-Saunders Date: 3/10/2015 2:02:00 PM A beautiful dedication...I am touched. Sometimes the answers are so simple but hurt none the less...hugs, Rhonda Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/11/2015 8:57:00 AM Thanks and a big hug back to you.

Paul Callus Date: 3/10/2015 12:33:00 PM Heartfelt and touching write that many can relate to. A jigsaw puzzle that perhaps will never be finished since pieces would have been lost in the passage of time. #7 Excellent poem, Richard. // paul Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/11/2015 8:58:00 AM I like your metophor Paul.

Cecilia Macfarlane Date: 3/10/2015 12:05:00 PM Impressive Richard, you draw us in with your words of wisdom, so many people think that it's there fault when their love one's leave, you flipped the coin beautifully here. A excellent and moving write! Hugs Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/11/2015 9:00:00 AM Thanks and hugs Cecilia. It is natural for kids to blame themselves when a parent leaves.

Demetrios Trifiatis Date: 3/10/2015 8:52:00 AM Captivating deep writing, searching for clues in the corridors of human soul! Majestic, dear Richard! Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/10/2015 9:08:00 AM Thanks Demetrios.

Kp Nunez Date: 3/9/2015 6:34:00 PM "Sad for for the loss of what they did not have." Other than the last line, this one jumped from the page, the saddest feeling a person can feel, before realization of the truth in "he would have been so proud". Again, Richard you have outdone yourself. Need I say more? :) Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/10/2015 8:06:00 AM Sure go ahead say more *lol*. Kidding aside, thanks for this awesome response.

Jessica Thompson Date: 3/9/2015 6:10:00 PM Beautifully written Richard. I can see how the story unfolds with beauty and sadness.. Well done my friend :) Hugs, Jess Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/9/2015 6:27:00 PM Thanks Jessica.

Nette Onclaud Date: 3/9/2015 3:25:00 PM this is profound and heartfelt, rich... we sometimes forget what is truly meaningful in life.. you got me!.. thanks for making me part of your past contest.. huggs Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/9/2015 6:28:00 PM Thanks and a big hug!

Njeri Hunjeri Date: 3/9/2015 6:48:00 AM Wow. Very deep. My fav line "For they possess a strength he never had" Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/9/2015 8:46:00 AM Thanks so much Njeri.

Charmaine Chircop Date: 3/8/2015 10:06:00 PM Yes if only He wasnt broken..If only He could see behind those dsrk glasses..He would have been proud..and Yes sometimed we keep searching for the moon andmiss the stsrs..Sometimes we get lost in what could have been to forget what it is and how beautiful it is..This poem moved me in many ways Richard. Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/9/2015 8:48:00 AM Good morning and thanks Charmaine! ;0).

Arthur Vaso Date: 3/8/2015 8:52:00 PM The title was amazing, and yes this time, I had an idea where you would take this before reading, loved it all the more for guessing right!!! Login to Reply

Arthur Vaso Date: 3/8/2015 8:50:00 PM Now this brings tears to my eyes, how is it we drift so, I wonder, is it not the poets, who see and feel all the pain in the world, is it they who push loved ones away, afraid of the hurt, then they become old. Login to Reply Arthur Vaso Date: 3/9/2015 3:53:00 PM Yes Richard, so true, although this made me think of more than just fathers, sometimes grandparents, family's drift apart and so I read this one on a few different levels!Sometimes we only realize what matters in life when is too late. Also why I loved this one. Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/9/2015 8:50:00 AM This is a sad story that has been experienced by so many. Absent fathers who have no idea what they are missing out on.

Jan Allison Date: 3/8/2015 6:03:00 PM I am simply blown away by the sensitive way you have deal with such a tough subject - I am sure many people could relate to this write - the final 10 lines brought tears to my eyes - wow - he would have been proud had he been around!:-) Hugs Jan 7 xx Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 7:13:00 PM My step dad once said to me that if my Dad was alive he would be so proud of me. It really touched me.

Tim Smith Date: 3/8/2015 4:00:00 PM In searching for what they were missing they found what they had...excellent...a7 Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 7:13:00 PM Thanks Tim!

Emile Pinet Date: 3/8/2015 1:50:00 PM "He would have been so proud" these words sum up nicely the atmosphere that this poem conjures in its reading. Hope guides the affection of two souls devoted to each other in bonds of trust and grief that support and strengthen their resolve to experience life together and to the full. Emile. #7+++ Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 2:20:00 PM Thanks once again Emile. You are good g For my ego dear friend.

Eileen Manassian Date: 3/8/2015 1:26:00 PM Oh Richard....How did you write this with such understanding. That shines through in your book. You know so much for the workings of the human mind. I thought that often....as I read through. Such depth of understanding....You should have been a psychiatrist/psychologist/pastor/counselor/POET! HUGS Login to Reply Eileen Manassian Date: 3/8/2015 4:15:00 PM I'm well aware of that, Richard. :) I'm grateful that you're content and happy. Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 3:52:00 PM I am not complaining, I have received my education in an untraditional way. I am thankful for what I have learned and the interesting career I have enjoyed. Eileen Manassian Date: 3/8/2015 2:21:00 PM School is just a degree. You have wisdom beyond that. The wisdom from above is way beyond this wisdom of man. You have degrees in heaven's school, my dear. Never forget that. Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 2:19:00 PM Thanks Eileen, I guess I will settle for poet and friend. Hugs back to you. If I had gone on in school I would have been attracted to all of the above.

Mama Bear Date: 3/8/2015 11:55:00 AM Beautifully written How many families have gone through this and wondered? Did you not also have those questions in your life? Some times we are not enough to make people stay and be happy Never our faults but theirs You did this well Love Mom Login to Reply Richard Lamoureux Date: 3/8/2015 2:17:00 PM Thanks mom, I read some of Bev's poems and it brought back memories of going through dad's stuff.