Papa’s Tools

The handles of papa’s tools

Are dark with age,

But the handles, the handles

Were what caught my eye

They were lighter in color,

Where papa’s hands took purchase.

They were almost gold,

They were smooth and shiny

From his labor,

Where his fingers held each one.

Papa’s tools that had so often been used in the garden.

These tools that I stood looking at,

Had worked in so many gardens,

But papa always said

Hard work always pays off in the end.

As I stood there looking at papa’s tools

I had the hankering to reach out and touch,

Papa’s tools.

January 1998