His Father’s Son

The boy was small, slightly built,
poorly co-ordinated, lacking speed.
His father loudly bemoaned his dreams
of a family rugby player
when the boy was crushed beneath
schoolboy rugby scrums,
limping, bruised all over.

At high school the boy found hockey,
playing often, at all school games.
Release at last !
His father, disgusted, attended no matches.
Later the boy ran cross country
with the stamina of his wiry frame.

Once they reached adulthood
father was ready for his children’s company,
to lead his son into his adult world.
He found him a place in his yachting crew.

He was bewildered when
the boy turned it down.