“My Father’s Prayers,” Ensign, Mar. 1986, 66
My Father’s Prayers
Honorable Mention
Not all his prayers
were spoken from his knees.
Some leaped exultant
through the cornstalks’ hoeing,
some stumbled,
stiff as hailstones
on downed wheat.
Most of his prayers
were given
on his feet.
His last devotion
took us by surprise,
so short it was,
so quick—
a stifled sigh,
like a far tractor
on a country road
at night,
whispering the world
goodbye.