Poetry Slam

MEANINGLESS FATHER

NOW THAT I AM OLDER I CAN
TELL YOU HOW MUCH YOU MEAN
A FATHER PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE
TO A LITTLE GIRLS SELF ESTEEM

A LOT OF LITTLE GIRLS
CAN'T SAY THEY'RE AS
LUCKY AS ME BECAUSE
THEIR DADS DON'T COME
AROUND OR ACKNOWLEDGE
THEM BEING OFFSPRING

I FEEL SO VERY SORRY
FOR THOSE GIRLS ESPECIALLY
THEY WILL SEARCH AND SEARCH
FOR THEIR FATHER'S LOVE
AND THEY SEARCH FOR IT
ENDLESSLY

FOR A FATHER THEY ARE
ALWAYS LOOKING
NO MATTER WHERE IT BE
TO FILL THE HOLLOW SPACE
INSIDE OF THE ONE THING
THAT is ALWAYS MISSING

THEY WILL USUALLY SETTLE
FOR A MAN WHO WILL
DELIVER A DAILY BEATING
BECAUSE OVER A PERIOD
of TIME THEY BELIEVE THAT
THEY DON'T DESERVE hiM

THE ONE THING, I WOULD TELL
THOSE GIRLS IS THAT
EVERYTHING WILL BE OK
NO ONE NEEDS A FATHER
FIGURE THAT NEGLECTS
THEM ANYWAY

TODAY IS THE DAY, I WILL TELL
MY DAD JUST HOW MUCH HE MEANS
ON SECOND THOUGHT THERE'S NOT
ONE MEMORY HE'S EVER CREATED
WITH ME

FOR ME HE'S NEVER BEEN THERE, FOR
A BIRTHDAY OR EVEN HALLOWEEN
I'M GLAD I'M NOT THE CHILD OF HIS MOTHER
WHAT SHE RAISED, IS A USELESS HUMAN
BEING

THE DAUGHTER OF MY MOTHER
IS WHO I'M PROUD TO BE
MY MOTHER IS ACTUALLY DOING
A GREAT JOB SO MUCH SO
THAT MAN'S WORTHLESS TO ME

---Donna Faye Newton, USA