Debby J Tumanduk
2 min readJun 19, 2022

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In Your Eyes, Papa

Photo by Debby J Tumanduk with the image of my parents

Papa,
In your eyes, I see a girl
A girl who needs your body to protect, your eyes to watch her
A girl who needs your hands to help, your brain to guide her
A girl who needs your arms to embrace, your shoulders to carry her
A girl who needs your fingers to teach, your nose to find her
A girl who needs your mouth to talk, your heart to love her
A girl who needs your ears to listen, your feet to walk with her
A girl who needs your soul to guide, your heart to raise her
Papa,
In your eyes, I see a man
A man who loves his little girl unconditionally,
A man who carried her from the day she was born until the day she got married
A man who teaches her about life, love, and responsibilities
Papa,
In your eyes, I see a father
A loving father who cried like a baby when I left you behind with that young man whom I call husband
A father who fed me chicken porridge whenever I was sick
A father who bought me beautiful gowns on your payday
A father who gave me shiny shoes on my birthdays
A father who packed jewelry and chocolate every Christmas
A father who told ghost stories every weekend
Papa,
In your eyes, I see a daughter
The happiest daughter in the world
A daughter who is grateful for the life you have given to her
A daughter who is proud of your unconditional love for me, mommy, and my brothers
Papa, thank you for being my fortress
For being an umbrella when it rained
Thank you for your lifetime patience, and your life guidance.
Papa,
In your eyes, I see tears of joy, a cry of happiness
because I made it as a mother, a wife, and a woman
Papa, I am proud to be your daughter
And in your eyes, I say: “You have done your job as the greatest father in the world”
Happy Father’s Day. I love you, Papi

@Debby J Tumanduk
@copyright
Thank you all for taking the time to read my poem.

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Debby J Tumanduk

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Agent ,photographer, and writer, based in the Netherlands.