The Summer of ‘98-A Short Story

I remember the summer of ‘98 like it was yesterday. The sun was a relentless tyrant, and the air was thick with the smell of cut grass and dusty sneakers. The neighborhood kids, a motley crew of preteens with scraped knees and boundless energy, spent every waking hour playing street soccer in front of old Mr. Atley’s house. He hated us, and we loved the thrill of annoying him. He was the grumpy Goliath, and we were the plucky Davids, a soccer ball our only sling. The best player on the street was Kevin. He was a year older than the rest of us, with a mop of sandy hair and a cocky grin. He was faster, more agile, and had a way of dribbling the ball that made it seem like an extension of his own foot. He knew it, too, and his constant showboating drove me crazy. I was a decent player, but Kevin always found a way to make me look like a clumsy oaf, stealing the ball from me with a quick flick of his ankle or nutmegging me with a cheeky grin. One day, our game intensified. It was just Kevi...
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Fatherhood

The silent worry in the late-night dark,

A heavy weight, a lonely, burning spark.

The child's soft breathing, a rhythm slow and deep,

While fathers watch, and promises they keep.


The weary shoulders, burdened with the need,

To plant the hopes and nurture every seed.

The scraped-up knees, the lessons learned too late,

The quiet fears that seal a father's fate.


But in the chaos, where the triumphs lie,

A tiny hand that waves, a loving eye.

The first unsteady steps, a fearless fall,

A father's grip, to catch and hold them all.


The laughter echoes through the sunlit room,

A brilliant bloom dispelling every gloom.

A graduation cap, a tear-filled gaze,

The pride that lifts him up through all his days.


He sees his face in a new, young, hopeful view,

The man he was, and the man he's becoming, too.

And in the mirror of the child's success,

The father's story finds its truest blessedness.

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