I WISH

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I wish Sinatra was still here to sing about the lonely hearts in the wee small hours of the morning.

I wish John Lennon was still here, to sing about romance and the rights of the common man.

I wish Robin was still here to make my heart laugh and my soul quiver.

I wish Ruth was still here to keep the hopes of women alive.

I wish John Lewis was still here to be a good kind of bad.

I wish my mom was still here so I could say, “I understand now.”

I wish my dad was still here, to teach me more about rooting for the little guy.

And I wish I didn’t have to wish to make good things come true and good people come through.

But the good news is that all these wonderful people and more:

the lawmakers and the lawbreakers, 

the merrymakers and the heartbreakers

Will never forsake me

Because they are as indelible as the wind

As warm as the sun

As powerful as the snow

And as challenging as the moon

That as far as I know

Despite our unimaginable distance 

will never leave me.

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