South Padre

Five fingers, part of a hand affixed to an arm
raised in acknowledgment , hello, farewell or
‘Hey, here I am!'

His upper right extremity signals,
hails, gestures to me.
A sign to pause and remember,
reflect upon his life, the man he is.

The photograph in vibrant color,
sharper than my memory
etches red, his shirt
blue cerulean, the sky;
a line of aqua ocean casts itself
upon the pale cream of a Gulf coast beach.

And I, exist invisible in back of the lens
driven to this place and time
behind the driver's seat of his Cadillac wheels.
Suspended in this forever moment,
I magnify his image to fill the void
left by his unscheduled embarkation,
frame the shot that arrows through my heart—

Happy birthday anniversary, my departed father.
Always here, your daughter, looking back to you.

c. Darlene Moore Berg