The father worked, worked so hard,
That his son may know no hardships,
Worked so hard, so that his son
One day would make him proud.

The mother, the home was her world,
Taught the son the nuances of life,
Taught him the rights and the wrongs,
To make, one day, her ideal man.

The retired father, looking for his son,
Saw him working hard, working hard,
So that his son may know no hardships
One day would make him proud.

The beseeching father said, “My son,
I have time for you, I want to talk”,
“No time, my dad, I’m working hard,
So that my son knows no hardships.”

Mom saw every stage of his growth,
Was proud he knew right from wrong,
Until son became a man, until he met
His friends, teachers, and his woman.

The mother saw the ideal man no more,
He no longer knew right from wrong,
I taught him well, only too well,
Now my wrongs are his rights.

It was bad, her son has gone astray,
It was bad, his son knew not his duty,
Towards his parents, his pitying eyes went,
Towards his son, his loving heart flew.

God, give me the strength to accept,
My son will be a stranger, one day,
His rights will be my wrongs,
His sense of duty alien to mine.

I will teach him my rights and wrongs,
Force on him, my vision of duty,
Until the day, when I see my son,
Call me “an old fashioned fool”.

God, give me the wisdom to smile,
And the love to hold his hand,
And the patience to whisper to him,
Do the same, when your son calls you so.