A Poem From My Father to My Mother

Remember when we met

when I was a kite

when you were the wind

when Dublin was dance-hall days

foggy nights

what-ifs and maybes

 

remember when I fell into myself

how you forgave me

and forgive me still

remember Burt Bacharach in the hotel lobby

when you exclaimed, “It’s him!”

remember how we used to dance

how the room spun with us

This Guy’s in Love with You

remember when you said, “Yes.”

 

remember those funhouse mirror years

when you remained a childless mother

remember the worry in your voice

when you threw the word into the air

not knowing if I would catch it

“Adoption…”

remember how I was the fool

who should have held you

more

 

remember how they grew

in our arms

on our laps

how they left

but never leave

remember when months became decades

and we forgave ourselves

for getting old

 

remember before

 

I started

 

to forget

 

remember when we ran across the dawn

or wanted to, at least