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Remembrances of a father and a daughter
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Posted on Mar 03 2005
The voice of her father would call out, “Anching, let’s go to my meeting, girl!” and Francine would jump up and follow her dad, Capt. Franklin R. Babauta, Company Commander of Company E, 100 Battalion, 442d Infantry.
Babauta, who is currently deployed in Iraq, recalls memories of his daughter while reading the poem he received in the mail from her.
When asked what he remembers most often about Francine, he gave a big smile and said, “She loves to bake.”
He describes his daughter as a gifted child and an honor student who loves to read and write.
As a student of Mt. Carmel High School, Francine was recently given a special assignment in her English class to write a poem about anything. Unlike the other student, she decided to write a poem about her feelings and experience relating to her dad’s deployment to Iraq. Her excellent skills in writing enabled her to create a beautiful poem that expresses her deepest feelings about a father-and-daughter relationship.
Here is her poem:
A story about my dad
Sad lonely nights have passed me by
As I say prayers and cry…
For my daddy was to go to war,
And he had to say goodbye.
You see, he was a soldier,
And I knew it was time for him to fight.
For I was the one who answered the phone
That deployment night.
It’s sad because he’s a cool dad,
And we were always seen together.
I’d tell him anything on my mind,
For we are best friends forever.
I was never tired to be with my dad,
I went wherever he went.
I even followed him to meetings,
One hour or two he spent.
And I was never ashamed to be with him
I don’t care what others would say…
For they have never met my dad,
So what do they know anyway?
I will cherish all our memories,
And keep them close to my heart,
For my father was called to duty.
And that had torn me apart.
But it’s OK because I know he’s safe,
And everything’s all right.
I just have to be patient,
And pray every single night.
* * *
Editor’s Note: This article was submitted by Sgt. Fabian Indalecio, who is currently deployed in Iraq, together with other members of the Company E, 100 Battalion, 442d Infantry.
