Papa, My Hero

By

Somindra Kishen Hazari Jr.

Air India Flight AI-118 Toronto-Delhi, Flying Somewhere Over Russia

Your lessons on life were well thought
You loved me even though we fought
Even in silence you understood me
Close my eyes and a bigger picture I see
You showed me how to live with pain
Making others laugh was always your gain
Clean shaven, and smartly dressed
You always knew how to impress
You commanded the respect of the room
Even though you didn’t like to broom
You picked yourself up when others brought you down and showed them all
Who is the king of this town
You were called Sona, a Hindi word for gold
But I remember you for being bold
Not only did you show me how to survive
But also discovered my passion which is to drive
You made us laugh even when we were angry with you
How you did this? I still have no clue
You were one who would love to eat
While your conversations were always a treat
I still don’t know how you put up with life
Looking after two kids and a wife
We would circle around you and listen to your story
Funny, light hearted and nothing gory
You always said what was on your mind
Even when others gave you the grind
Eat, sleep, greet and meat
The only thing you couldn’t tolerate was a cheat
People would always call on you for a favor
And you showed us how this improves our own behavior
You knew that I was never really good with words
That I am an animal lover except for birds
We loved our moms you and I
We get upset when they cry
Simple, elegant and true
If only I had more time with you
I didn’t know where time flew
As the distance between us grew
For you it was day and for me it was night
At least we didn’t have to fight
There were times when I needed to take a tough stand
My intuition was always guided by your hand
Learn from my mistakes was always what you will always say
Thanks to you, in the mornings I now pray
You made me realize my full potential and push myself to strive
Oh, how I wish we could go for one more drive.
A world pandemic came about and we had to realize
About all the necessary things and how to prioritize
We celebrated at the thought of my residency
And I planned to go home and have my loved ones around me

Then one morning I got the call
That shattered me and caused me to fall
For the first time in my life I lost all control
Lost my fighting spirit and my emotions raged
The inner fighting animal was caged
I tossed, turned, wailed and cried
I just couldn’t believe that you have died
Will time ever make me heal?
The next day was just unreal
I know now that your laid to rest
But I just couldn’t get over this pain in my chest
You will always be in my heart and thought
No matter how often we fought
So from now on no matter how things can get bad
I will always be proud of you my dad
Nothing may ever be the same
As I carry on your name.