For Dad - A Father's Lullaby

With Fathers' Day approaching, I tried to put myself into the mindset of  today's young men who are trying to be strong husbands and role models for their children in the midst of so much change in society.

  I was extremely lucky to be blessed with a father who gifted me with many tender memories.   Most of those memories are happy musical ones, but one is a very poignant one:  The occasion was the celebration of life for my brother-in-law, Gary; That was the day Dad's flood gates overflowed, overpowered by waters that were just too heavy.  As I watched him trying to hide his tears, I felt such immense love for him - I wanted to tell him that men are allowed to cry, that fathers are allowed to cry; Tears act as a release valve for all of us when the flood waters of stress threaten to overwhelm us.

 I hope dad knows how much influence his tears had on me, both the ones that came from heartache and those that rolled down his cheeks as he indulged in wonderful belly laughs.

I wish all of you fathers a Happy Fathers' Day - Kleenex is optional!

When night falls hard upon your dreams,

And wakes you from your sleep,

And you contemplate the echoes,

For the meaning that runs deep;

When your ship of hope has run aground,

On fears you can't get past;

When you cry aloud for rescue,

From troubles that hold fast,

Then lay your burden down awhile,

And fill your lungs with air,

And when you take it up again,

Know that He'll be there;

A loving guide to clear away

Each rock along your stumbling way,

Who understands the load you bear,

And listens to your father's prayer;

Father help us all to heal, to  look beyond our pain,

To let go of hurt, and prejudice and to let love start again;

let us speak tender words to each other,

 And let our song somehow

Soothe the hearts of those who are crying,

For the world needs a lullaby

 Right about now.