If you listen quietly,
You can hear the babies cry.
Their Daddies have all moved away,
And no one's told them why.
Just because they are so small,
We think they do not know.
What it is we've done to them,
When we decide to go.
That's a lie we tell ourselves,
To make ourselves believe.
That it really doesn't matter,
When we decide to leave.
Not only does it matter,
Hear me when I say.
They don't need us just on weekends,
They need us every day.
As I sit and write these words,
I can't describe the pain.
As I recall the things I did,
I relive it once again.
I cannot even see the page,
My eyes so full of tears.
Still I cannot cry them dry,
After all these years.
I love my sons so very much,
But I did not put them first.
I was just so selfish,
That I behaved my worst.
I left them with their Mommies,
I left them all alone.
I saw them on the weekends,
And sometimes on the phone.
Why did I leave my sons behind,
Did I think I could be free.
If I blamed it on their mothers,
When the fault belonged to me.
Listen when I tell you,
These words I speak are true.
There's no freedom in the prison,
That your acts create for you.
The day will come when you will see,
What you have done so wrong.
You'll know your babies didn't get,
What they needed all along.
You'll realize that it's your fault,
And there's nothing you can do.
You will not get a second chance,
To see your babies through.
Before you know it they are grown,
And their choices aren't so good.
Because their Daddy didn't teach them,
All the things he should.
Oh, they will always love you,
But that just makes it worse.
For in your heart you'll always know,
You've given them a curse.
And in your heart you'll always know,
That love is not enough.
You need to teach them every day,
And do the "Daddy" stuff.
They need you there to laugh with them,
To hold them when they cry.
To hug them and to kiss them,
And be the apple of your eye.
I often wonder what went on,
Inside their little heart.
When I packed up and went away,
And ripped their lives apart.
If you leave your babies,
That's exactly what you do.
Then one day you realize,
Just what you've put them through.
Then every time you see a child,
Your heart will start to swell.
You'll remember what you've done,
It's your little piece of hell.
There'll be nothng you can do,
To satisfy the guilt.
It's like a dagger in your heart,
That's buried to the hilt.
Every time you see a Daddy,
Doing what is right.
You will know that you have failed,
And you can never make it right.
Every night when you lie down,
You'll hear your babies cry.
You'll taste the salty teardrops,
That trickle from your eye.
You'll ask the Lord for mercy,
And He'll forgive you too.
He'll wrap His arms around you,
And He will help you through.
Still you have to face the sunrise,
Each and every day.
Always knowing in your heart,
It was you who walked away.
My Father up in heaven,
Has forgiven me that sin.
But I cannot leave this prison,
That I am living in.
I can only promise,
To be here every day.
So when my children call on me,
They'll know I'm back to stay.
Even then the pain persists,
It never goes away.
I'm shackled in this prison,
I live in every day.
I have no one I can blame,
The fault is only mine.
I'm the one who made the choice,
To leave my sons behind.
So many other Daddies,
Have done the same as I.
And if they listen quietly,
They can hear their babies cry.
They can hear them crying,
No matter where they roam.
Yet all those tears would turn to joy,
If Daddy would come home.
I heard another baby cry,
Just the other day.
She told me that her Daddy,
Had packed and moved away.
I went off by myself and cried,
Knowing I'm the one.
I caused this problem long ago,
Her Daddy is my son.
That's why this is a prison,
I am living in.
Because my former selfishness,
Has hurt someone again.
Even though the years have passed,
And I have changed my ways.
I cannot reverse the damage,
Of my younger days.
So in this prison I will stay,
Until my days are through.
Always wishing I could change,
What I cannot undo.
If you are a Daddy,
Do not move away.
They need you more than weekends,
They need you every day.
Every day that you are gone,
Is a day you cant retrieve.
And it soon creates a prison,
That you can never leave.
If I could do it all again,
I would not move away.
I'd spend some time with all my kids,
Each and every day.
Author © Chick Velasco
© 10/4/99
Email Chick Velasco ©
Used with permission
All Rights Reserved
No part of this poem may be reproduced or used in any way without the prior written permission of
Chick Velasco
Thank you so much Chick.
