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Father

The poem reflects on a father who worked tirelessly to provide for his family without rest or play. As a child, the speaker wondered why his father never took time off from work but could not understand the responsibilities he carried. Now older, the speaker realizes his father was ambitious for his children's education and future, working to complete his "earthly mission" by seeing his child graduate. Though the father grew frail from his constant labor, his life and dedication to his family is now understood to have been "big and splendid."

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Kate Batac
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99 views2 pages

Father

The poem reflects on a father who worked tirelessly to provide for his family without rest or play. As a child, the speaker wondered why his father never took time off from work but could not understand the responsibilities he carried. Now older, the speaker realizes his father was ambitious for his children's education and future, working to complete his "earthly mission" by seeing his child graduate. Though the father grew frail from his constant labor, his life and dedication to his family is now understood to have been "big and splendid."

Uploaded by

Kate Batac
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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FATHER

Edgar Guest

Often we do not fully recognize some of the important lessons of home and hearth until those
who have taught us are gone.

Used to Wonder just why father


Never had much time for play,
Used to wonder why he'd rather
Work each minute of the day.
Used to wonder why he never
Loafed along the road an' shirked:
Can't recall a time whenever
Father played while others worked.

Father didn't dress in fashion,


Sort of hated clothing new;
Style with him was not a passion;
He had other things in view.
Boys are blind to much that s going
On about em day by day,
And I had no way of knowing
What became of father’s pay.

All T knew was when I needed


Shoes I got em on the spot;
Everything for which I pleaded,
Somehow, father always got.
Wondered, season after season,
Why he never took a rest,
And that I might be the reason
Then I never even guessed.

Father set a store on knowledge;


If he'd lived to have his way
He d have sent me off to college
And the bills been glad to pay.
That, I know, was his ambition.
Now and then he used to say
He'd have done his earthly mission
On my graduation day.

Saw his cheeks were getting paler


Didn't understand just why;
Saw his body growing frailer,
Then at last I saw him die.
Rest had come! His tasks were ended
Calm was written on his brow:
Father's life was big and splendid,
And I understand it now.

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