Hats

Whatever weather, my father always wore hats.
Most men did, then,
in the Forties and Fifties.
Think Frank Sinatra.

Today, most men do not,
but I feel comfortable in them.
It’s both a matter of being complete,
and signaling who I am.

I can wear pin-stripe suits and Rep striped ties,
wing-tip shoes,
and button-down shirts
but that is for special occasions.

Mostly I wear jeans, Levi’s when I can get them.
I still love the West,
most Oregon and Utah.
I have also lived in New England
the mid-Atlantic, and the Eastern Shore.

Still, I do wear boots. With my hat
they say who I am: a Western Man,
even if I wear P.J.’s in bed
and take off my hat in church
and whenever I’m dining.