TO AN ABSENT FATHER AND MOTHER

(Yet another for Barack Obama upon his inauguration as president)
By John Sibi-Okumu

So Daddy O
Why don’t you throw a little party in heaven
If you’ve been forgiven
Or burn less harshly in hell
Now is that being a little bit too unsentimental
Or get out sooner from purgatory
You see
That’s the other option

It doesn’t quite matter if in God we trust
This is for all who sometimes wonder
Whether they were conceived in love or lust
Your son has proved with this elevation
That such is possible within creation
There’s no need to dwell on roads taken or not taken.

So junior go ahead and lead away
You must know what you can do for your country
And never forget in the coming years
The many many hopes and fears
Met in you on this day

So Mommy O
Why don’t you throw a little party in heaven
If you’ve been forgiven
Or burn less harshly in hell
Now is that being a little too unsentimental
Or get out sooner from purgatory
You see
That’s the other option

It doesn’t quite matter if someone yells out bastard
While he’s standing sipping a drink at a bar
I mean who cares when that word was first uttered
Your son has proved with this elevation
A mother’s love is a great benediction
Sustaining in ways that defy description.

So junior go ahead and lead away
You must know what you can do for your country
And never forget in the coming years
The many many hopes and fears
Met in you on this day