Memories of a Forgotten Man

Dad I hardly knew you
You were just a dream to me
Someone that I heard about
But who I had rarely seen
I kept your picture in my dresser drawer
I kept your memory in my heart
Now the memories have begun to fade
The years have torn them apart
I have seen so many places
I have felt so much sorrow
Dad, why weren’t you ever here
To reassure me about tomorrow

The first time I fell in love
I could have used some fatherly advice
And when she finally broke my heart
Some comfort would have been nice
I spent so many lonely days
In my room without a friend
If only you had been around
Instead of a memory on the wind
We could have seen so many places
We could have shared so many things
You could have given me your wisdom
And the comfort a father brings

Now, today I received a phone call
From a very good friend of yours
He told me you had passed away
For you cancer there was no cure
But the saddest thing he said to me
Was that he had never known
That you had left three young children
Behind in a broken home

Now his news has torn me up inside
There is so much I would have said
Now I would give anything
If we had, had just one more day
I would have told you all about my life
My hopes, my dreams, my fears
But most of all I would have said to you
I loved you dad, Oh how much I loved you

D.S. Brueckner
1980