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When I Meet Uncle Bill

When I meet Uncle Bill

I’ll be so happy to see him

and I’ll tell him how Dad

used to always talk about him,

how they would hunt and fish together.

 I’ll tell him that when Dad had Alzheimer’s

he’d talk to me as if I was his brother Bill.

I’ll tell Uncle Bill, “When Dad

was fighting in the Philippines

and heard you were killed in France,

Dad wrote an encouraging letter to your mother

saying that you wouldn’t want her to worry

that it was your duty and no matter how tough

you’d do it. It was the way you were.”

When I meet Uncle Bill,

I’ll tell him I missed knowing him.

Missed having his wife as an aunt

and his children as my cousins.

Missed seeing him and Dad laughing together.

When I meet Uncle Bill,

I’ll thank him and give him a big hug.