A Pantoum for Dad

I want to take the flag in the front yard down.
My father wants everyone to know he loves his country.
“It’s no sin to be proud of who you are and where you’re from.”
Some other time I’ll have to explain to him he’s crazy.

My father let everyone know he loved his country.
Before he died, I knelt by his bedside and finally forgave him.
It no longer mattered all the reasons I went crazy.
When I see butterflies or orange poppies I think of him at peace.

The day he died, me by his bedside, he finally forgave me.
An ocean of relief and loss swept through my body and took me.
I look for butterflies and orange poppies to remember all that peace.
I am my father’s daughter and I owe no more apologies.

This ocean of relief and loss sweeps through my body and takes me.
It’s no sin to be proud of who I am and where I’m from.
I am my father’s daughter and I owe no more apologies.
I’m glad we never took the flag in the front yard down.

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Created in residency at Liminal