Elegy of a Hero

As we end National Poetry Month, I noticed that in last week’s Throwback Thursday, I shared an old poem I wrote for my Grandma nearly twenty years ago.  But sadly, I never wrote one for my Granddaddy when he was alive.  As you know, my grandparents raised me from the time I was born, so he was the only dad I ever knew.  So today, I’ll honor him with a verse…

Requiem for My Granddaddy
By: Rachel Carrera

If a girl had a grandfather
That couldn’t be beat,
It had to be
My Granddaddy Pete.

When he was young, he
Ran like a crackerjack;
So, when he started high school,
He took up track.

He ran very fast;
Swifter than any other;
The only one to catch him
Was my lovely grandmother.

Later, he enlisted;
He joined the Air Force;
He wanted to fly,
So, it was a logical course.

He looked so handsome
In his uniform of blue,
As he fought for our freedom
In World War Two.

As he served his country,
Mere survival was a wager;
But he stuck it out
And retired as a Major.

After he retired
From being a protector,
He started a job
As a citrus inspector.

He would bring home oranges
And grapefruits sometimes,
And occasionally, he would
Bring bags of lemons and limes.

And when I was born,
He took good care of me;
He would tell me stories
As I sat on his knee.

He sent me to private school
To get a good education,
And he steered me away
When I succumbed to temptation.

The story of my Granddaddy
Wouldn’t be complete
If I didn’t mention his stocks
That he invested in on Wall Street.

But then he got sick,
And he broke our routine;
He passed away when
I was only seventeen.

I miss my Granddaddy;
I sure loved him so;
I wish I’d have told him more often
So I was sure he would know.