Poem: Explaining Suzanne Vega To My Father

A poem about what makes a father proud. And what doesn’t.

My dad once told me that my brother
had been in a room with John Key.

the former Prime Minister of NZ.
“That’s pretty impressive”, he added.

I told him his other son, meaning me,
had shared a cup of tea with Suzanne Vega.

“She wrote that song Luka”. I also
pointed out we hadn’t shared

the same cup, it was in fact Tea For Two
(always worth pointing out when it comes

to the arts). There were oysters at
the John Key Shindig. The beer flowed

like wine… “She also wrote Tom’s Diner”,
I found myself saying. The old man fumbling

for the remote, finding some Motorsport.
Telling me also: To “Shhhhh”