Written on September 15, 2010 for my former love and dear friend, Chad Vance. This poem was a semi-finalist in the World Poetry Movement’s 2011 Amateur Poetry Contest.

Your daughter is used to my voice and my heart, but I want one of my own
and you won’t play the part
of father to my children
because you’ve had enough
of the crying and whining,
said it’s too tough to raise a kid, but this time you won’t be on your own—
it’ll have a mother and a father and a loving home.
Yet you hesitate
say you’ll never change your mind
but I think in time
you will come to find
that this gift you’ve been given is more than you thought
and then you’ll be caught
between what you wanted then and what you want now
and maybe somehow
you’ll see things in a different way
and then someday
you’ll be holding my hand
and you’ll understand why I wanted this with you, because our baby will be half of me
and half of you.
You’ll look into its hazel eyes
and you will realize
that this will be worth doing all over again
because being a dad has been
the most rewarding experience of your life
and with me as your wife
it’ll be easier this time
and you’ll see that things will be fine.

So I’ll wait for you to turn into the man you will be
and then we will see
if you change your heart
because I only want you to fill the part
of my baby’s loving dad
my wonderful and amazing Chad.