My father knows the proper way <br /> The nation should be run; <br /> He tells us children every day <br /> Just what should now be done. <br /> He knows the way to fix the trusts, <br /> He has a simple plan; <br /> But if the furnace needs repairs, <br /> We have to hire a man. <br /> My father, in a day or two <br /> Could land big thieves in jail; <br /> There's nothing that he cannot do, <br /> He knows no word like "fail." <br /> "Our confidence" he would restore, <br /> Of that there is no doubt; <br /> But if there is a chair to mend, <br /> We have to send it out. <br /> <br /> All public questions that arise, <br /> He settles on the spot; <br /> He waits not till the tumult dies, <br /> But grabs it while it's hot. <br /> In matters of finance he can <br /> Tell Congress what to do; <br /> But, O, he finds it hard to meet <br /> His bills as they fall due. <br /> <br /> It almost makes him sick to read <br /> The things law-makers say; <br /> Why, father's just the man they need, <br /> He never goes astray. <br /> All wars he'd very quickly end, <br /> As fast as I can write it; <br /> But when a neighbor starts a fuss, <br /> 'Tis mother has to fight it. <br /> <br /> In conversation father can <br /> Do many wondrous things; <br /> He's built upon a wiser plan <br /> Than presidents or kings. <br /> He knows the ins and outs of each <br /> And every deep transaction; <br /> We look to him for theories, <br /> But look to ma for action.<br /><br />Edgar Albert Guest<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/father/
