Written by I was thinking about my kids this evening while looking through the 100+ blog posts I have written. I came across this poem I wrote as part of the post, “It’s Quiet Now”, from October. So I thought I’d post it on its own. It still brings tears to my eyes as I’m reminded that time keeps flowing
Iike a river…hey maybe that should be a song. Anyway, enjoy. I love our kids.
It’s quiet now, except for the gently, falling autumn rain
But the tears on my face expose my feeling of pain
The twins are down for the count, sleeping so serene
Two kids off at college, with two more in SAU 19
I try to hide deep in the sound of music on my headphones
Looking at pictures; reading, sniffling, and crying at my own poems
I tell myself to feel the feeling when it’s present, don’t push it away
Enjoy the reasons why this feeling will come again another day
The kids are all growing, way too fast as far as I’m concerned
Not fast enough for them, a lesson yet to be learned
Erin, my beautiful daughter, will be off to college soon enough
Another moving day on the horizon, good-bye will again be tough
Hundreds of photos, thousands of words, about my kids, the rhythm of rhyme
Fills my head, while I relish the quiet, but can’t wait for our next time
I hope in this time their thoughts are on things other than me
It’s important they be present, engaged in life, as it should be
Oddly enough there’s nothing planned at all for later this evening
A rare occurrence in this day and age of unrest and constant moving
But if the kids had something on their plate tonight, that’s the place
I would rather be, with my wife, and a smile on my face
I could count the days until we’re all together again, but its torture
When I think of how few the chances will be in a grown up’s future
So, while my heart is still pumping, and my eyes see the morning sun
I will be a driving force to make sure there’s time for everyone
Family first, the words hang in the kitchen on the refrigerator
Be present now, so there will be too many memories to reminisce on later
That’s all for now I guess, with a smile on my face, because what I did,
Really, I reminded myself that I have six absolutely amazing kids