Father

i.m. Mick

Like a wet dog

you trailed muddy pawprints

through all our lives:

pre-war son, a man's man,

skylarks with pylons,

speedway motorbikes,

drinker, smoker, stubborn.

Three wives outlived,

scattered daughters.

Hard to live with,

hard to live without.

Beloved, beloved, beloved.

Sue Spiers