Al Hager
I will always run with you
in rain or under skies blue
but not because of your loss.
When I was your boss
and you just another kid
trying to do what I did,
I saw you were smart
and did more than your part
fixing 40-year-old airplanes well.
At maintenance you did excel.
You live life without excuse
cheerful despite fortune’s abuse.
Family, friends, and loved ones
you stick by your guns
to protect and keep safe
always a smile on your face.
Others have an easier lot
but you complain not.
It can’t be easy losing a leg
but for mitigation you don’t beg.
You taught me so much;
that self-pity is a crutch,
with no place in a man’s life.
Your beautiful child and wife
are proud of who you are;
the guiding light shining far.
Allen, I love you as a brother.
You have strength like no other.
Having grown since our early days
your mighty character stays.
Knowing you has improved me too.
I will always run with you
in rain or under skies blue
but not because of your loss.
Bottles On The Tides
Bobbing along
Out of sight,
The green bottle
Tottles along
Listing left of straight,
Endless as the sea,
Seemingly forever.
Our lives are but
Bottles on the tides
Overlapped by waves
Needlessly pushed to and fro.
Our minds are but
Bottles on the tides
Thoughts are sealed;
Hermetically, wax dipped,
Eternally captured, fleeting.
Our hearts are but
Bottles on the tides
Tickled and tricked by soft caresses,
Introduced to love and emotion,
Destroyed like sandcastles.
Endlessly the cycle continues,
Seaborne, encased in green foam.
Our souls are but
Bottles on the tides.
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