I caught myself thinking
“why do we even have
a father’s or a mother’s day?
when did the government decide to step in
and make sure we remember fathers and mothers?
I dont need no government all up in my…”

and I had to stop and laugh
‘cus that’s probably what you’d be thinking Dad
I live on my own now
but for some reason with each passing day
I become more and more like you
the good and the bad

hell even the way our lives panned out is kinda similar
you wanted my story to be different, to be a happier one
and it is, in the fine details
but the archetypes, the tropes, the themes still remain
I only wonder
will I be like you Dad?
gone through two divorces three marriages
having three kids three step kids
driving a truck a car a van a car an suv and right back to a car again
going from a starter home to on the street living on friends couches to a small apartment to a small starter home to a bigger home where grandkids could one day roam
with an ocean of knowledge; about architecture, building with your bare hands and your brain.
with a world weariness, for in your youth you joined the army and did things you still cannot speak of
with a quiet kind of discipline, for all it took was one look from you and I knew to behave
with a rockstar humor, a rough-around-the-edges wit, and a way with people that meant you never met a stranger

What am I gonna do
if and when I have a son of my own
and he looks up at me
and with my father’s grin, says
” I wanna be like you Dad”