Good Father
he never scolds us,
oh, he never shouts.
he never scolds us,
oh, he never shouts.
whenever i talk,
from him, you'll never hear a sound.
i wail and i kick,
but you'll never see him frown.
no, and you'll never see him around.
i shout at him,
he never shouts back.
no matter how bad i become,
i was never slapped.
that is my father,
a father i never had.
a man so good to me,
he never bothered to show up.
Maria is a Filipino in Singapore, and a neophyte paddler of the Kallang River.
Image from www.redbubble.com