Here a father speaks to
his daughter.

For My Daughter

David Ignatow

When I die choose a star
and name it after me
that you may know
I have not abandoned
or forgotten you.
You were such a star to me,
following you through birth
and childhood, my hand
in your hand.

When I die
choose a star and name it
after me so that I may shine
down on you, until you join
me in darkness and silence
together.

from Against the Evidence: Selected Poems 1934-1994
Wesleyan University Press, Middletown, Conn.