“My Dad,” New Era, Nov. 1988, 34–35
My Family:
My Dad
See the man.
He is my dad.
This poem is named after him.
It is called “My Dad.”
See Dad.
See Dad work.
Work, work, work.
See Dad work to support the family.
See Dad work hard,
Teach, teach, teach.
It is day.
Where is dad?
Dad is teaching.
It is night.
Where is Dad?
Dad is teaching.
See the man.
He is my dad
See Dad take us on bicycle rides.
Ride, ride, ride.
See Dad play games with us,
Ball, ball, ball,
Chess, Chess, Chess,
Scrabble, Scrabble, Scrabble,
Battleship, Battleship, Battleship,
Sorry, Sorry, Sorry (that’s a game).
Dad cannot play very well.
We always win.
Is this on purpose?
Hmm, Hmm, Hmm.
See the man.
He is my dad.
See my dad go to church.
Church, church, church,
Church, church, church,
Church, church, church,
Church, church, church.
Dad really likes church a lot.
Why does Dad like church so much?
He knows the Church is true.
Testimony, testimony, testimony.
Strong, strong, strong.
See Dad do what is right,
Right, right, right.
Bad language?
NO! NO! NO!
R-rated movies?
NO! NO! NO!
Do I get to go see these movies?
No! No! No!
See Dad be a good example,
Example, example, example.
See Dad serve,
Serve, serve, serve,
Serve, serve, serve,
Serve, serve, serve.
How come Dad gets to serve so much?
Because he is the bishop!
Bishop! Bishop! Bishop!
Phone, phone, phone.
Can I phone my friends?
No, No, No.
Dad’s on the phone.
See the man.
He is my dad.
See Dad fix the house,
Fix, fix, fix,
Paint, paint, paint,
Garden, garden, garden.
See Dad garden WAY OUT back.
Why, way out back?
It gets him away from the phone!
Away, Away, Away.
See Dad work on the cars.
Why does Dad always work on the cars?
Because they are old.
Elderly, elderly, elderly.
See the man.
He is my dad.
See the Scout.
He is my dad.
Scout, Scout, Scout.
Eagle, Eagle, Eagle.
My grandfather is an Eagle.
My father is an Eagle.
I will be an Eagle,
Soon, soon, soon.
See the garage.
What does the garage have to do with Scouts?
Our cars cannot fit in the garage.
There is too much Scout stuff in the garage.
Stuff, stuff, stuff,
Junk? Junk? Junk?
Newspapers, newspapers, newspapers,
What do newspapers have to do with Scouts?
Collect, collect, collect.
Load, load, load.
Unload, unload, unload.
Load, load, load.
Unload, unload, unload.
See the Jeep and the truck.
What do they have to do with Scouts?
Dad is driving the Scouts to an outing.
Drive, drive, drive.
See the man.
He is my dad.
He loves our family.
He loves my mom.
Love, love, love.
He loves his children.
See Dad.
See Dad support our activities.
Drive, drive, drive.
Pick up Loren.
Drop off Alissa and her entourage of friends.
Watch Levin.
Take Loren.
Get Landon.
Drop off Loren.
Pick up Linton.
Watch Levin.
Clean church stuff off the living room table.
Why?
So that Mom can have a meeting in the living room!
Go pick up Alissa.
Go pick up Loren.
See Dad go to bed.
Bed, bed, bed.
Tired, tired, tired.
I LOVE MY DAD!
Love, love, love.
Illustrated by Phyllis Luch