Poetry for my dad

Kristopher Finkey

The Golden Years by Billy Collins

• All I do these drawn-out days is sit in my kitchen at Pheasant Ridge where there are no pheasants to be seen and last time I looked, no ridge. I could drive over to Quail Falls and spend the day there playing bridge, but the lack of a falls and the absence of quail would only remind me of Pheasant Ridge. I know a widow at Fox Run and another with a condo at Smokey Ledge. One of them smokes, and neither can run, so I’ll stick to the pledge I made to Midge. Who frightened the fox and bulldozed the ledge? I ask in my kitchen at Pheasant Ridge.

• The poem is The Golden Years by Billy Collins. The poem is being

spoken to no one in particular, the speaker is the poet. As for the occasion, he just seems to be noting the names of several places don’t match what they’re actually like. The similes are the places being described, and how they don’t apply to the places. The tone is informal, just thinking to ones self. The rhyme scheme is ABCB up to the last couplet, which is AA. The structure is that of a Shakespearean sonnet . The diction is informal, like one is wondering aloud. The symbolism of the title evokes the feeling that the speaker is an older man with time on his hands thinking of the names of the places he and people he knows live, which is also the theme of the poem. I chose this one because it really sounds like something my dad would think about.

Father by Edgar Guest• My father knows the proper way The nation should be run; He tells us children

every day Just what should now be done. He knows the way to fix the trusts, He has a simple plan; But if the furnace needs repairs, We have to hire a man. My father, in a day or two Could land big thieves in jail; There's nothing that he cannot do, He knows no word like "fail." "Our confidence" he would restore, Of that there is no doubt; But if there is a chair to mend, We have to send it out. All public questions that arise, He settles on the spot; He waits not till the tumult dies, But grabs it while it's hot. In matters of finance he can Tell Congress what to do; But, O, he finds it hard to meet His bills as they fall due. It almost makes him sick to read The things law-makers say; Why, father's just the man they need, He never goes astray. All wars he'd very quickly end, As fast as I can write it; But when a neighbor starts a fuss, 'Tis mother has to fight it. In conversation father can Do many wondrous things; He's built upon a wiser plan Than presidents or kings. He knows the ins and outs of each And every deep transaction; We look to him for theories, But look to ma for action.

• The title of the poem is Father by Edgar Guest. The speaker in this poem

is presumably the poet, he is addressing the audience, and the occasion is talking about his father. The subject of the poem is the speaker’s dad. There is little imagery in the poem, it is mostly describing the things the speaker’s father claims he would do if he was in a position of power. The tone is one of sarcasm, as the speaker is listing all these things his father says he would do in a position of power, when in matters as small as arguing with the neighbors, he does nothing or has his wife do it. The closest the title comes to being symbolic is that it simply is the subject of the poem. The diction is straightforward. I chose this poem to add simply because it’s a thing that all dads do, make claims about how they would fix the world if they were president. Though most of the secondary claims like not paying the bills or sending his wife to argue with the neighbors don’t really apply to my dad.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost

• Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake. The only other sound's the sweep Of easy wind and downy flake. The woods are lovely, dark, and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.

• The poem is Stopping by the woods on a snowy evening. The speaker is the poet presumably, and his is addressing no one in particular, so it’s the audience. The occasion is simply remarking on the beauty of nature. There isn’t much imagery in this poem, he simply describes the snow as downy and the wind as easy. The tone is one that is reverent to nature. The structure is a simple one, it is 4 four line stanzas. The rhyme scheme of the first three stanzas is AABA, and the last one is AAAA. The title of the poem is more literal than symbolic, as it simply tells what the poem is about. The diction is straight forward, there isn’t much flowery or unnecessary prose. As for why I chose this poem, it’s because me and my Dad like winter and snow.

A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement Clark Moore

• 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there; The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap, When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash. The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below, When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer, With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name; "Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen! On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen! To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall! Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!" As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky; So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, With the sleigh full of Toys, and St. Nicholas too. And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound. He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot, And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a pedler just opening his pack. His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow; The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath; He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf, And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself; A wink of his eye and a twist of his head, Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread; He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose, And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose; He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thistle, But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight, "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."

• The poem is A Visit From St. Nicholas. The speaker is the head of a family, who was awakened in the middle of the night, as for who the speaker is speaking to, it’s the audience. The main idea of the poem is relaying to the audience a visit from St. Nicholas. The imagery of the poem is especially vivid. Perhaps the most famous example would be describing Santa’s belly jiggling when he laughs like a bowl full of jelly. There’s also his nose being described as a cherry, and his mouth being drawn up like a bow. The rhyme scheme and structure are rhyming couplets. The title of the poem just says what the poem is about The tone is one of wonder and joy. As for the diction, it is very descriptive of both Santa and the things around. I chose this poem to add because Christmas is me and my Dad’s favorite time of the year.

Standby for liftoff

• The plane is ready• Passengers are all seated• Vacation is go

• This poem is about my family’s vacations, which we wouldn’t have been able to take without my Dad, as we got to travel on military cargo planes similar to the one in the picture, thanks to his being in the army. The speaker is me and I am addressing who ever is reading the poem.The poem follows the haiku format, and the tone is one of anticipation.

Castle with a view

• On top of a hill• A castle stands to the side• The view is the best

• This poem is about my family’s trips to Germany, specifically the view from the castle Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, as can be seen in the picture I chose. While the walk up to the castle is a long and sometimes difficult one, the view is well worth it, and I wouldn’t have been able to see it if it hadn’t been for my Dad. The poem follows the standard haiku format, and the tone is one of reverence for the view.

Conquering the mountain

• Together we stand• The mountain curving downward• We ski for the day

• I wrote this one because me and my dad love to ski together, as we both learned how at the same time and at the same place. This one is specifically about a time that we were skiing on the tallest mountain in Germany, The Zugspitze. The poem like the rest of mine follow traditional Haiku form. The tone is one of courage and brotherhood.

Thank you dad

• Many thanks I give• For all the things you have done• Thank you my father

• I wrote this one to thank my dad for all things he has done for me, the chances he’s given me, the places we’ve been, the experiences we’ve shared. Like the rest of my poems is follows a Haiku format. The tone is one of gratitude.

Sources• http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20415• http://www.ketzle.com/frost/snowyeve.htm• http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19286• http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/C-17_test_s

ortie.jpg• http://www.massachusetts-prenuptial-agreements.com/wp-content

/uploads/2011/05/Sunset-1.jpg• http://www.bayregio.de/zugspitze/pistenplan-zugspitze.jpg• http://www.germany-insider-facts.com/image-files/neuschwanstein-

castle-germany-view-to-hohenschwangau.jpg• http://www.studiobminiatures.com/images/rooms/christmas-room1

.jpg• http://notesonanapkin.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/snowy_woods.

jpg• http://pics4.city-data.com/cpicc/cfiles38785.jpg • http://www.thecradle.com/image/image_gallery?img_id=2692 • http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20860