19
Michiko heard it first before she opened her eyes: a guitar and a man’s voice singing.
“I call out your name when life’s light fades.
Your face helps me shine again.
Shine away these shadows—
we've got so much further to go.
We’ll carry these times with us for the rest of our lives.
Your name is like ointment on my callused feet.
I'd do anything to surf the storms raging in your eyes.
Michiko
Michiko
Michiko
Don't forget to shine…”
Her father, Arthur, was sitting next to her bed, finger-picking his guitar.
He had black hair and wore jeans and sandals.
He was singing the song he'd wrote for her so many years ago.
She sang with him.
“Michiko, Michiko, Michiko…”
Her father played a final chord on his guitar, let it ring out. When the song was over, he threw the guitar asi
