Poem for a Fathers Funeral

by Cliff Sargeant

My father died recently and I could not find a suitable poem to read for him at his cremation that reflected what I wanted to say, so I wrote my
own.





THAT MAN

When I was born that man was there,
Tall and strong and fair of hair.
He watched my mother give me birth,
As I fought my way onto this Earth.

That man would rock me off to sleep,
Would wipe my tears when I did weep.
He watched me go from crawl to walk,
And smiled with pride when I learned to talk.

That man taught me to ride a bike,
And even how to fly a kite.
He taught me to know wrong from right,
When to run and when to fight.

That man was made of many parts,
A teacher of lifes skills and arts.
Full of love and full of care,
With much to give, and much to share.

As I grew older so did he,
But that man was always there for me.
His love, unspoken ,but strong and clear,
Of that I have no doubt or fear.

Time passed, that man grew old and frail,
No longer strong, but weak and pale.
Now I helped him, as he'd helped me
A debt to repay, no charge, no fee.

And now that man has left this life,
No longer parted from his wife
Memories are all that we have left
Of that man who was the best.

Who was that man, you may well ask?
To tell you now is my last task.
It makes me proud, it makes me glad,
To tell you that man, he was my dad.