in church my father could never remove his hat quickly enough

Kerrin P Sharpe 2014

some men pray
hat in hand

my father’s hat
waited on the pew
like a small dog

its thick band
home to the hackle fly
the deer hopper dry fly
the dunkeld wet fly

though he caught few
my father prayed like a fish
and at times walked like one

it was his hat that kept him
on an even keel