Photo Credit: Jeremy Smith
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"Ode’ to Husband and Daughter"
by Deborah Close
The career fields you’ve chosen are to serve and protect,
I honor you immensely and give you my utmost respect.
Reasons why you chose this path are unknown to me,
But daily prayers on bended knee are from all the family.
The strength you must show against the evils of the world untold,
Only harbors your depth of compassion the world may never unfold.
Your uniforms so starched and your badge so shiny,
You continue to make me proud even when you’ve run into something grimy.
You see more in one day then I do in a year,
Thus my hair goes grey out of concern and fear.
The people you meet will challenge your humanity,
And give you some pause to question your sanity.
The way you both serve with such honor and care
Reflects your principles and reputation you both do share.
The choices you have to make in a nominal flash,
Could mean life or death for you, your partner, or the trash.
Though I write these words with love and concern,
Your safety is my goal and my respect you have earned.
Author's Reflection
My poem emphasis is on “cultural identity” (Atkins) and like Anne Bradstreet , a puritan (1612-1672), who was the first women to speak on her behalf, had written poems to her children and husband. To her husband she wrote, “To My Dear and Loving Husband.” She also wrote sweet and touching words to her children that had left the nest in a poem called “In Reference to Her Children.”
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