Time carries me relentlessly I caught some droplets off its vast stream Held them in my agings hands and made ink. I refuse to let it go. We shall remember. 1. Bonding Your mother can see into mysteries invisible to me I nod when her prophecies come true Wondering about my blindness I might have worried when she said You and I were not bonding But I knew things were fine (fathers have their own powers, you see) We did bond. We became quite the pair, you and I Countless steps back and forth Holding you close to my chest 2. Right leg up I hope to one day visit your home To sit down and have a cup of coffee I don’t know what we’ll talk about (I suspect it won’t be trucks anymore) But I’m confident your right leg will be up Just like you always liked it 3. Mexerico You’ve been fond of touching Ever since you were born Each face and toy and wall Was something to be explored with curious fingers Even today, three years later You still tell me that you’re just seeing this or that With your hands 4. Mirror Some people tell me you look just like me I tend to disagree, my hair and skin being darker Except in the earliest of hours when the world looks black and white I look at you and see myself A ripple from another place and time 5. Fearlessness and robots You seem to have no fear You’ll climb and jump and fight sometimes too bravely for my own heart Nothing frightens you except for robots Perhaps you know something we don’t. 6. Cooking and feeding If I invite you to cook You drop your favorite toy to join We like the fire, the smells and tastes And we like to share our joy May your pantry ever be full I’m sure your table will have many guests. 7. Dally For years I was neither daddy nor papai I was ‘dal-ly!’ That’s how you’d summon me when you felt hungry, tired, proud or lonely And even when I was tired and everything else was quiet I reminded myself that one day would be the last time And I’d miss your voice I do miss it Never hesitate to call me That’s what dallys are for