When I was just a young boy
I'd sit on my daddy's knee
He'd sing songs from the old days
about how things used to be
When I was a young boy
my daddy went out to sea
and he left me this old coat
to keep me company.
This old coat has memories
This old coat holds dreams
this old coat has the purest love
stitched into the seams
This old coat my grandma made
when my dad was just a boy
This old coat may smell funny
but it always brings me joy.
The letter came to momma
she read it, and started to cry
I didn't have the courage to ask
but deep down, i knew why.
Daddy wasn't coming home this time
They lost him out at sea
All I have is his old coat
to keep me company
Now I will have a son someday
and I'll give this coat to him
and hopefully it will keep him warm
when things start looking grim
It'll remind him of his granddad
and it'll remind him of me
and maybe he'll tell this story
when his own son's on his knee
He'll say
This old coat has memories
This old coat holds dreams
this old coat has the purest love
stitched into the seams
This old coat my great grandma made
when my granddad was just a boy
This old coat may look funny
but it always brings me joy.
A contest entry
- This Old Coat... For The Poetic Bandits Group only... by Melodies.
750 points, ended March 1, 17 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
-
Excellent!
What a wonderful poem with great meaning and flow. I can imagine this being sung and shared with people for a long long time. You have responded magnifcently to the contest prompt, best of luck to you in the contest!
Brother Dennis
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What a beautiful and tender poem!
A wonderful poem! So true... we can bring to mind a whole scene of memories from something dear like an old coat. 
When we see a person wearing an old coat or hat we might wonder about all the living that went into wearing it. Thank you for this splendid entry. 
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