My father's promise

He said he wanted to try.

I believed him.

I opened my hands again,

my heart like an unlocked door,

letting him walk back in.

For a while,

there were smiles,

a softness in his voice

I had never met before.

I thought maybe this was it—

maybe this was dad.

But hope can be cruel.

It flickered,

and then he disappeared

all over again.