The Observation Deck

I wrote this poem shortly before my father died of a stroke in NYC

Running with my Father

My father lies semi-conscious in his hospital bed
But we ran together this morning in the early morning mist
This time I held his hand in mine as he did when I was a child
"Run faster, Dad. I can beat you!" and he let me - what did I know?

Along the river's edge I thought of all those stories he told me
His Bible in his hand, those archetypal stories reaching deep into my little heart
Were they real? how come the Bible sounded different when he read it to me?
Teaching me to pray, I knew I had more than one Father
A comfort in the time of trouble

Across the grassy green parkland I looked at him and saw his smile
The laugh I'll never forget, the smile that encompassed his whole body
His joy for life - we ran together him and I - his footsteps were large
No getting lost with him. We raced together once, that 5K in the woods
He was my age then and never winced as the hills kept coming and coming
"You did great Pops! How do you feel?" His smile was the answer.

I ran a little faster as I neared the end of my run with him
I wanted to gather all my memories as my heartbeat stirred ever faster
What little time I had left was going to be my memories of him
We finished together in the mist this morning. I had more than mist in my eyes.

I stopped my watch, walked in the door and cried. He cried too but we did it together
My father and I.

Alex (I hope it's okay sharing this with all of you?)

Alex Belisle wrote:Alex (I hope it's okay sharing this with all of you?)

Sharing is one of the true pleasures in life.

Thank you.

.

I was out with my own dad today- in another grassy green parkland.

We were close there physically, but I could get no closer than six feet away from him.

We were a lot closer a few months ago, but in many ways- these days, we are now closer than ever.

After Mom passed away, I had no idea how the two of us would get along;

...both being opinionated, strong-willed, highly competitive perfectionists... kings of the mountain kings...

But get along? Oh yes we did, for ten more wonderful years together...

...years of music, love, service, faith, and life....

Give and take sometimes? Yes.

Compromise, cooperation, and indeed, teamwork always? Oh yes indeed...

...through the good times, and eventually, through the medical moments that came.

"But Gary", he would say, "always remember that no matter how bad the difficult moments of life can be, they're just the blink of an eye in the span of a lifetime. Never forget to smile every day, because it may be the only one that someone sees."

Thanks for that poem Alex. Now, here's my dear late dad's smile to go with it, and one for me too.



Back to the banjo...