pass the baton

life, a great race

life is a relay race
in which we can get the baton
long before we feel ready to run,

I sit here and think of my father
and of how much he would love to hold my grandchildren,

in his arms and in his heart,
to play with them, to throw them up in the air,
to see in them what I’ve heard he saw in me,
a “just wait till you see Little Henry,” I’ve heard tell he’d say,

our part in the race can finish earlier than seems right,

nevertheless, the race goes on,

and each runner checks within, reaches deep,
and pulls out an effort to give the best,

my father was amazing,
and who I am only hopes to do as well as he
with what is possible for me,

I am undone by every moment with my grandchildren,
I am even more undone when I imagine my father with them,

the baton is precious, may the race continue on,
and, as we run forward, may we remember and honor all those
who came before us in the great run.

by Henry Walker
July 25, ’12