Father's Day, 1996
By Patience
Akpan
Did you ever run into his
love
Dished out in a tight hug and showers of kisses
Did your heart
ever swell with joy
At the sound of his footsteps?
I did, it did and much
more
In the dim glow of the lamp
We read
Shakespeare
Under the moonlight
We took turns to play out the
scenes
He was my Antonio and I his Portia
His voice rang out deep and clear as
the night sky
The staid Catholic hymns took up wings of glory
The
Psalms became songs and prayers
When friends made joyful noise to their
God
Long division became as easy as
ABC
The times table wasn't my nightmare anymore
As the light of his
seemingly infinite knowledge
Shone on the Arithmetic exercise book
With his words he formed me:
You
can do it, my beloved
You can be anything you want to be
And I'll be
there to support you
Dr-Do-Good
stood between me and my friend
But the scars on my arms are now
stars
For through them I shine as I become whole.
He calls me the light of his
life
The jewel in his crown
I am
- the fountain of his
spring
- the proof of his manhood
- his beloved first
born
And he is my father, my hero
My
first love against whom no man
compares |