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Part Two<br />
I sit down in the low chair<br />
Take a sip of water<br />
Put on my red reading glasses<br />
I think about how Atticus became the model papa for me<br />
My namesake deserted my brother Paul and me<br />
My step-father had been deserted himself by his father<br />
He did the best he knew how to do<br />
But Atticus was reasonable, articulate, fair, and a crack shot<br />
I have tried to follow his lead as a father<br />
Part Three<br />
I look up at the small congregation of onlookers<br />
Friends, colleagues, fellow lovers of this singular book and<br />
Random passersby<br />
In the empty back row chairs<br />
I imagine my daughter and my son sitting<br />
I imagine my mother and my father sitting<br />
I imagine all of my former literature students sitting<br />
I imagine Truman Capote sitting<br />
I imagine Gregory Peck sitting<br />
I imagine Harper Lee and her daddy sitting<br />
I wet my lips<br />
Take a deep breath<br />
I begin<br />
116 WINDWARD REVIEW | Vol. 18