My Father’s Clothes
My father left a rack of suits
And on their cloth still hung cologne
Hand tailored navies, greys and mutes
And one plus-fours in herringbone
He had a drawer-full plump with ties
Rolled silks and regimental stripes
But none with matching handkerchiefs
For dad was not one of those types
He favoured good strong walking shoes
And walk he did with fancy cane
“If you look smart, then you are smart”
Was Duncan Baxter’s wise refrain
Some thought my dad a gentleman
He opened doors and doffed his hat
And rose when ladies entered rooms
Now why don’t people still do that?
Folks called him “sir” when he’d arrive
He had that bearing in his blood
Though widowed with a brood of five
He did the very best he could
He taught us rules are hard and fast
And manners make you who you are
And please and thank you always last
As first impressions take you far
Another thing he used to say
“To thine own self always be true”
Has helped me even to this day
When sometimes unsure what to do
Occasionally he’d raise his hand
To keep his errant sons in line
I didn’t understand it then
I wonder would it work on mine
We children could have had much more
Our aunts and uncles used to say
If he’d been wise enough to store
Some money for a rainy day
In truth he lived beyond his means
As men of taste are wont to do
And never realized his dreams
To live the life he wanted to
He moved among a group of friends
Who drank pink gins at social dos
And puffed on Turkish cigarettes
And daily scanned the racing news
He should have been a country squire
Perhaps what he was born to be
With open fires and hearty stews
A labrador beside his knee
To ride about in hunting pink
My brunette mother by his side
Alas there was no joy I think
For father after mother died
My mother left her darling ones
All spirited and out of hand
Three lovely daughters and two sons
On Valentine’s in Newfoundland
Now father lies in simple ground
Carnations flutter at his stone
Across the road, a pub he’d found
Where he would never drink alone
The day he left, the landlord’s flag
Was billowed half along its pole
And locals gathered, glass in hand
To send a tribute to his soul
And when I gaze at hillsides green
Or hear a Richard Tauber strain
Or think of places where we’ve been
I see his weathered smile again
My father left a rack of suits
Those things that last when you are gone
And life is short and love is rare
No matter what clothes you have on.