he becomes a boy before my eyes
asking if my sight is sharp enough
to loop the line through another hook
and if this were half a century ago
he'd be asking grandpa to help him
rig his pole and take his picture with
the big shiny bass he finally caught
say fishies!
with that trademark thumbs up
with silver whiskers and skin like
the choppy surface of the lake, and i
vow to always remember my daddy
this way
as the happiest little boy
i ever have seen