I have my paints and I have my brushes
I have canvases of all dimensions
I paint myself a never-ending garden
And I hop, skip and somesault right into my painting

Follow right behind me in your barefeet
Feel the coolness of the moist, new Summer grass
As you stoop to smell each flower
Look for delicate fairies asleep in there

I am wondering what's around the corner 
At this stage of my life
As I venture down the path to find out
I am distracted 
I am held in wonder
I smile at some old memory that this path has brought to resurface
I look back and the vision there has now become a new memory

I must forge ahead
To discover  what's around the bend

With a flutter of excitement in my wings
With a skipped beat in my heart
With a shudder that ripples over my skin
I can't quite see beyond the blinding light
But let me muster new faith and courage
To ride the next adventure that awaits me around the corner.......

I really didn't want to know about Father's Day this year
But the media incessantly reminded me it was drawing near
So I am facing my first hollow Father's Day 
Without my Dad being here

Do you have a personal line in heaven I can call you, Dad
For I miss my phone conversations with you
Which I was making quite fequently
And now I am making none

I would like to hear your voice again
Giving me advice as to what to eat and what to avoid
How I must go to bed earlier 
To keep my immunity intact
How I should exercise and breathe deeply 
To oxegenate the cells in my brain
All the way down to my feet
I rolled my eyes: I already know all that, Dad!
But now I like to know all that again from you

When I was down about something
You pause and consider the right answer
And when there was none
You said you would commit me to prayer
Over time, I have seen your prayers for me answered
And I am reaping the rewards of of your earnest supplications

When you left, it seemed like the one and only guy
Who found me special from the moment I laid my paws on this earth, is gone

You never met your birth Mother and you were Fatherless yourself at a young age
But somehow, you grew up to harbour strong ambitions
To make something of your life 
Then you in turn,
Made my life a bed of roses eventho you had laid your head on a hard pillow

My life is so Blessed today
I thank you Dad for having given me such a great beginning
To equip me well for the rest of my life.....

In the song of Led Zeppelin, I too would like to buy a Stairway to Heaven
So, I can visit you from time to time...

I've told you many times before
Yah...don't roll your eyes at me... you know what I am about to say 
Yes, I love you, Dad 
All the way to Heaven and back...

It's nice to have a  painting companion come along
Here he is, with his feet and coffee planted firmly on the ground.

He brought coffee, he didn't bring me one.
It's all right, I no longer drink coffee
I brought a mango-cantaloupe-watermelon- peanut butter smoothie, I didn't bring him one
Just as well for he looked at my orange muckety arkety oowee goop
And asked if I was having baby food
To which I sweetly snapped, " When one's busy painting, there's hardly time to chew..."