My Dad

Happy Birthday Dad, you would have been 73 today.
You will never know what an inspiration you were to me.
You will never know how much you influenced who I am.
You never really understood how I looked up to you or how much I loved you,
I just wish I knew why you loved a whisky bottle more that your son.
I just wish I could understand what drove you to your self destruction
I long for those lost years
I long for less tears
I just wish you could have always been the man I knew at the end
For that was the dad and the grandad to my children I always dreamed of.
You were not bad but you were weak.
I have forgiven those weaknesses because I wonder if I could have been stronger
I just hope you are at peace
I just hope you will understand
I just hope that others who pass on this journey will pass the test better than I
I love you Dad, Happy Birthday