ON TALKING WITH MY FATHER
A YEAR BEYOND HIS DEATH
Walking the dog you loved
on a late summer evening
too cool for tee shirts and shorts
and the setting sun a reminder
of how quickly comes the night,
I spoke to you aloud
to say again I missed you
and hoped you were at peace
when you answered in a voice
which I alone could hear,
a poplar shimmering without wind
to bend the schoolyard grass
or change the flight of moths
fluttering in the fading light.
– Joseph Neely 2026
Another poem rewritten time and time again over several years. Early versions were on the sappy side, but I stuck with it because the background story – a tree shimmering in response to a conversation with my deceased father – was real and moving.
My book, SLOW RIVERS, can be ordered through your local bookstore or online via bookshop.org. (ISBN 979-8-218-43822-7)
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The Occasional Poem 