Saturday, January 8, 2011

Poem - I Miss These Men

My Brother and Me - 1977 - Indiana

I Miss These Men

My dad sat in the back pew
The day I wed,
So very ill,
Cancer,
Parkinson’s,
Fatigue,

My brother walked with me,
Strong, handsome,
Like Omar Sharif,
I like an Irish lass,
Siblings nonetheless,

Proudly we walked,
Tears
Misted my eyes
As I kissed my dad
In the
Back pew
The day I wed,

Later that year he died
Age 63,
I was 23
Too young to know
How much I missed,

My brother now is gone as well
Age 56,
His heart gave out,
I don’t know why,
He hadn’t changed
Since my wedding day,
So strong, so sure,
Invincible to me,

I miss these men,

Gone so young,

But while they lived
They really lived,
Teaching,
Giving,
Loving
Sharing,
Daring to be
Real,
Not compromising
On ideals,
The were the deal,
The real deal,

On the day I wed
I could not know,
But now I know
How to live,

Like them,

I’ll live like them.

Dad and my Brother - 1964

9 comments:

  1. A very poignant memory of two wonderful men. Thank you for bringing back their spirits through your words.
    Love,
    Maureen

    ReplyDelete
  2. Beautiful words for two of the world's most wonderful men. Thank you dear poet. Love, Judy

    ReplyDelete
  3. That may be Jim taking photos in the church - back pew - as the lovely bride and her brother walk up the aisle. xoxoxo

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you, Maureen. I have the photo of Kennan and me behind my computer and I see it every day. Last night, I was inspired to write about it.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Judy, that is definitely Jim in the back of church. He took many wonderful photos that day. Yes, they were two of the world's most wonderful men - well said.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you, Shannon. Your father was such a gift to all of us.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you so much, Marti. xoxo

    ReplyDelete