Daddy's Poem
~
Her hair
was up in a pony tail,
her favorite dress tied with a bow.
Today
was Daddy's Day at school,
and she couldn't wait to go.
But her mommy tried to tell her,
that
she probably should stay home.
Why the kids might not understand,
if she went to school alone.
But
she was not afraid;
she knew just what to say.
What to tell her classmates
of why he
wasn't there today.
But still her mother worried,
for her to face this day alone.
And
that was why once again,
she tried to keep her daughter home.
But the little girl went to school
eager
to tell them all.
About a dad she never sees
a dad who never calls.
There were daddies
along the wall in back,
for everyone to meet.
Children squirming impatiently,
anxious
in their seats
One by one the teacher called
a student from the class.
To introduce
their daddy,
as seconds slowly passed.
At
last the teacher called her name,
every child turned to stare.
Each of them was searching,
for
a man who wasn't there.
"Where's her daddy at?"
she heard a boy call out.
"She probably
doesn't have one,"
another student dared to shout.
And from somewhere near the back,
she
heard a daddy say,
"Looks like another deadbeat dad,
too busy to waste his day."
The
words did not offend her,
as she smiled back at her Mom.
And looked back at her teacher,
who
told her to go on.
And with hands behind her back,
slowly she began to speak.
And out
from the mouth of a child,
came words so incredibly unique.
"My Daddy couldn't be here,
'cause
he lives so far away.
But I know he wishes he could be,
since this is such a special day.
And
though you cannot meet him,
I wanted you to know.
All about my daddy,
and how much
he loves me so.
He loved to tell me stories
he taught me to ride my bike.
He surprised
me with pink roses,
and taught me to fly a kite.
We used to share fudge sundaes,
and
ice cream in a cone.
And though you cannot see him.
I'm not standing here alone.
"
'Cause my daddy's always with me,
even though we are apart.
I know because he told me,
he'll
be forever in my heart"
With that, her little hand reached up,
and lay across her chest.
Feeling
her own heartbeat,
beneath her favorite dress.
And from somewhere in the crowd of dads,
her mother stood in tears.
Proudly
watching her daughter,
who was wise beyond her years.
For she stood up for the love
of
a man now not in her life.
Doing what was best for her,
doing what she knew was right.
And
when she dropped her hand back down,
staring straight into the crowd.
She finished with a voice
so soft,
but its message clear and loud.
"I
love my daddy very much,
he's my shining star.
And if he could, he'd be here,
but heaven's
just too far.
You see, he was a policeman
and died just this past year
When airplanes
hit the towers
and taught us all to fear.
But sometimes, when I close my eyes,
it's
like he never went away."
And then, she closed her eyes,
and she saw him there that day.
And
to her mother's amazement,
as she witnessed with surprise,
A room full of daddies and children,
all
starting to close their eyes.
Who knows what they saw before them,
who knows what they felt inside.
Perhaps
for merely a second,
they saw him at her side.
"I know you're with me, Daddy,"
to
the silence she called out.
And what happened next made believers,
of
those once filled with doubt.
No one in that room could explain it,
for each of their eyes had been
closed.
But there on the desk beside her,
lay a fragrant long-stemmed pink rose.
And a child was blessed, if only for a
moment,
by the love of her shining star.
And was given the gift of believing,
that heaven is never too far.
Author Unknown
~ Remember ~
Dear one
It only
takes a
minute to find a special
person,
an hour to appreciate them, a day to
love them, but a lifetime to forget them.
