Late Night Phone Calls
The baby came crawling to me tonight
Saying “Da, Da”
With her silly little grin
I wanted to stop and call
The way I’ve always done for
Another of those late night phone calls
From halfway across the country
Or wherever I might be
To share the moment
As I have so many others
Through the years
Through the times
Good and bad
And what better day than today
For it is the Ides of March
And your birthday
You’d like to hear
How she stood at my knee
Bravely holding on with one hand
And grinned with pride
On shaky legs
You’d like to hear, too
Of her sisters
Who have grown
And changed so much
Since you last saw them
The oldest has shot up so tall
Big sister in every sense of the word
But still the little devil
Whose words never cease and
Whose laughter echoes
From down the hall
And, of course, there’s your namesake
With bright blue eyes
So much like your own
There’s so much to tell
And we’ve always enjoyed
Another of those late night phone calls
From halfway across the country
Or wherever I might be
But never so far as we are now
How I’d love once more
To share all the news
And the joy
But tonight
As I held your namesake
Until she went to sleep
I cried
For the first time
Since we took you home to rest
Leaving this void
And the sad knowledge
That my children will never know
The joys you had to share
And how they’ll never know
Of what they’ve missed in
Another of those late night phone calls
From halfway across the country
Or wherever they might be.
mFm
15MAR91
09:40 P.M.
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