6/18/2006 Poem by Danielle Nguyen

When afternoons are quiet and
birds chirp outside,
I think of my father.
I can see him standing there,
can see his fluffy black hair
and the delight of his smile.
He is clean,
like his crisp work shirts
and short fingernails


I hear his strange laughter
scare the cat,
who he speaks to regularly.
I suspect it is because
only things that are truly alive
can hear the melody in his voice.
Only a kindred spirit
could recognize the calm dignity
of greatness.


Men cannot talk to animals
But my father is above mere men.