by Linda (Custer) Garrett

My Father

There is a plan for everything.
For everything there is a season.
We may not understand or know;
For everything, there is a reason.

This is the philosophy my Dad lived by;
He accepted it without a word.
If what you asked for was in God's plan,
Your prayers would surely be heard.

He worked in the fields and at his job;
He toiled hard all his life.
But he never failed to thank the Lord,
Even amidst trouble and strife.

He never failed to spend time with us;
Even though he worked long, grueling hours
We had very little to speak of in our home,
But there was never a home as happy as ours.

We always did things as a family;
Went to visit friends and relatives on Sunday.
He'd drive for hours and sing those songs,
But he'd be right back to work on Monday.

He was stern, but always a fair man;
Children were to do as they were told.
He valued his home, his family, and his God;
His vows to his wife were as good as gold.

He'd sit in that chair and sing me to sleep,
Even though he must have been tired and all.
He always found time to play with me;
He was short, but to me he was ten feet tall.

He loved every one of his children;
Each one, from first to last.
When God made a man as good as him,
He must have broken the cast.

I've never seen another man like him:
Fair, honest, kind, and such a good wit.
I'll always remember him with fondness
In that chair where we used to sit.

In loving memory of my Father, Jesse A. Custer, whose values became my own - whose honesty and fairness for his fellow man, I try my best to live by day to day.

Linda F. Garrett