Ode to My Mom and Dad

By Christine Marie Chavez

Once upon a weekend pass, a Filipino sailor and Floridian lass,
Who had fallen in love not knowing what’s in store,

tried to marry, how outrageous! Different races, youthful ages.
But their love was raging, raging too much to ignore.
Driving north they fled unjust laws; that’s not what the laws are for;
They wanted only each other, and nothing more.






Walterboro,SC Courthouse







On the tenth of January, the sailor’s race began to vary,
The marriage license in South Carolina tells the score.
Suddenly, he was Hawaiian; it did not really feel like lyin’.
They sought only freedom, freedom to love whom they adore.
The couple, Zack and Louise, then bound to the core,
Pledged in 1962 to love each other forever more.

Back to St. Pete duty station, where their life was no vacation,
Though they never really thought of themselves as being poor;
Garage apartment, tiny bed; We will just make do, they said,
And put the frig on the porch outside the kitchen door,
And the dining table, too, went outside the kitchen door,
That was it, and nothing more.













Then in September ’62, suddenly, the family grew,
Little David Chavez simply could not be ignored;
For a while they squeezed the crib in on the liv’g room floor,
It was clear they had to move, first of many, it would prove,
But this time, only to the flat next door;
Where they had two bedrooms, and nothing more.

With Louise again expecting, Tina Marie became the next thing
Driving them for their children’s sake to strive for ever more;
And how Louise had longed to clean diapers in her own machine,
A house with washer, all that she asked for,
And while through birthing she did labor, Zack stepped up and did the favor,
Of moving the Chavez family once more.

Once the family had settled in here, orders came for Alexandria, Virginia,
And little did they know what was in store,
Seven months into their stay, Zack was being sent away
A year long isolated duty tour!
Leaving Louise with two babies, and one thing more.

Though the timing made her shudder, in her womb a heart did flutter,
Louise returned to St. Pete, and Zack to the Batan shore.
And while Zack did his duty; Carl arrived – a cutie!
After which Louise did finally implore
By herself with three children who were all under four,
Just give me these three, Lord, and never more.

At last the P.I. tour did end, Zack returned to buoy tend,
They lived in St. Pete for a few months more,
Then they crossed the Everglades and shipped the tv they had made,
To new quarters in Miami on the eastern shore.
Zack became an ET1 and fixed equipment while on shore.
Hoping for sea duty nevermore.

Then came orders for Hawaii, which at first, seemed exciting,
Paradise! Shore duty! Who could ask for more?
They packed the station wagon and with energy unflagging
Set off cross-country to the Pacific shore,
But as they drove the orders changed to sea duty once more,
Louise cried, oh please, nevermore!

They reached Travis in the night, waiting for the kids’ first flight.
Now not knowing what Hawaii had in store;
Coast Guard housing was not ready, Waikiki motel instead – eee!
No car, no house, just three kids on the floor.
While Zack tended weather balloons off-shore
Each month Louise pled, nevermore!

Pearly shells and tiny bubbles, soothed the Chavez family troubles,
Swimming in the ocean the kids did adore,
Dave became a handsome tyke, Tina tumbled from her bike,
And Carl, bless him Carl, when he wasn’t even four
Sat on a mound of red ants that would sting and sting some more
‘Til Louise hosed them off him evermore.


Zack’s career just kept progressing, soon he would be OCS’ing,
His accomplishments were too distinguished to ignore,
With his new rank on his sleeve, of the Islands they took leave,
And moved to Carson, California, where duty was to be on shore,
But the Coast Guard cutter Glacier called him back to sea once more,
Always leaving for sea duty, evermore.

With Zack gone for four months at a time, Louise would keep the kids in line,
Now Carson wasn’t Compton, but Compton was next door;
The kids grew up without complaining, likely ‘cause there’s no explaining,
What is was their father had to always leave them for,
So their father’s absences they simply grinned and bore
Still they loved him and they missed him evermore.

After years of sunny weather, which for all had been a pleasure
The time had come for them to move once more.
Cross-country once again, this time to Cleveland,
To a ‘burb called Lakewood on the Erie shore.
Where the weather was quite colder and true seasons there were four,
But of course they would not live there evermore.

In the big old house on Clifton, Grandma Chavez would move in,
She loved watching Lucy and buffing the wood floor.
Hissing heaters, skeleton keys, honeysuckle on the breeze,
And snow that stuck and piled up as they’d never seen before.
For a while Lakewood was home, but not for evermore.

The Coast Guard did then decree that Zack should have a new degree,
So the family packed it up once more
To Arizona they would drive, Grandma left, so just the five
Moved to Phoenix where they warmed up to the core
Learning electronics engineering was Zack’s new two-year chore
But his learning would continue evermore.

Alas, the student life must end, and so the Coast Guard then did send
Zack and family where the eagles soar,
And salmon run and there’s midnight sun
On Kodiak Island off the Kenai shore
They fished and crabbed and smoked and canned
And dined on seafood as they never had before
Until Louise could look at salmon nevermore.

From the west of the U.S., the family then did acquiesce
To an overseas assignment they’d adore
To the Far East they did go, just outside of Tokyo
Tachikawa and Yokota and a country to explore
Tanabata, ikebana, domo arigatou
The kids grew up with wanderlust that would affect them evermore.

First Dave’s sayonara; he was off to California
To Caltech with a bag and nothing more
Then Tina, off to Texas, destined to deal with her own hexes
But the family stayed a family, ever faithful to the core
As the kids sought love and knowledge
And to learn what life was for.

They tripped, they fell, but just as well
To learn just as their parents had before
Love, happiness and real success
Come from learning, by yourself, that you can soar
To love, love first yourself, then your amour















Empty nesters in their forties, fancy free were Zack and Louise
To pursue their newfound hobbies and explore
The depths of lifelong marriage, and oh how rare ‘tis
When a pair can claim that for fifty years or more
They’ve clung fast together and intend to evermore.


Congratulations, Mom and Dad, on your fiftieth wedding anniversary.

From your loving daughter, Tina

January 10, 2012