Welcome to Cozy Poetry Corner by Debra A Winter (Richter)

“A Second Father to Many: The Boss”

My boss is the second father to many,

As we all know, we need to earn a penny.

My Father has a big box store to run,

He knows it’s tough; not always fun.

He’s my boss and runs the store like home,

I can’t just moan or groan.

With two hundred and fifty children to father,

Sometimes I know he’s thinking. “Why does he bother?”

He gives employees chores to complete each day.

Some of the tasks will take time we all say.

Here he comes barking orders with his hat.

“Why didn’t this get done? Why didn’t that?”

Then says, “Got to look good, sales need to be.”

When we do it right, he won’t bark orders up our tree.

The Boss-Father works forty plus hours per week,

This father being a Boss doesn’t kiss your cheek.

He pays his working family for a job well done.

Won’t you come and join our family’s fun?

Meet our Boss, our second father to many.

Only if you need to make an honest penny.

Authors Note:

This poem was inspired by a real boss who felt more like a father than a manager. He made work feel like a joy instead of a chore — the kind of leader who teased you in fun, never in cruelty, and who always had your back when life got complicated. If you needed a few hours for a doctor’s appointment, he’d wave you out the door with a smile, trusting you to return when you could.

He also believed in his employees. When my first hamster book was published, he found the newspaper article about it and proudly hung it on the employee bulletin board for everyone to see. At that time, the illustrator — who worked under him too — and I had created two books together. He was genuinely proud that two of “his” people had made the paper and worked in his store. That moment said everything about him: he celebrated our successes as if they were his own.

This poem is my tribute to him — a second father to many, and a reminder that good leadership leaves a lasting mark.