Phil Specht is a retired farmer and a father who also lost a son. He wrote this poem on February 9, 2024, as a “deeply personal response to a very public mistreatment” of President Joe Biden, first by Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report and then by the press.

How Dare You Ask The Date My Son Died

I could not tell you.

A black cloud obscured the calendar.

Was it a Monday?

I do not know.

The death certificate has a date.

Check the obituary if you must.

I saw black. I could not read the calendar.

How dare you ask the date?

I heard a hawk say he is here still.

I heard him answer I love you too.

I see him guitar in hand.

Where he had tagged Nate was here.

Do not ask of date.

The wave that knocks me down,

will appear in my eyes.

Sharon’s wail fill my ears.

How dare you ask the date my son died.

The look on first responder’s face

the message hurry home.

Crystal clear in memory still.

The Sherriff’s hug. Yes I remember.

The last time I saw my son alive.

The last time I saw my son. I remember.

No matter how hard I have tried to forget.

Things I remember I would like to forget.

Do not dig up that grave unless to honor the bones.

The snow was melting. Winter gone.

Your mother and I married on such a day.

You fill our memories still.

Top photo of President Joe Biden originally published on The White House Facebook page on February 6, 2024.