"Those Winter Sundays" by Hayden

     This poem takes us into a glimpse of a father's schedule and a boy's relationship with him and it.   Throughout the poem, there are hints as to the relationship this boy (does not have to be a boy) has with his father. For example, in the verses, "and slowly I would rise and dress," shows his reluctance to be in the presence of his father which is emphasized in the verse, "fearing the chronic angers of that house."  Moreover, their relationship is more clearly defined by the verse, "Speaking indifferently to him." So we are faced with a boy who does not understand his father very well, and a father who feels that his weekly schedule of kindling a warm fire for his son to wake up to and polishing his shoes, are enough proof of his love for this boy.  

       The final two verses, "What did I know, what did I know, of love's austere and lonely offices?" show the boy's, now a man, understanding that love can come in many forms.  The emphasis on the words "lonely" and "austere" allude to the author's interpretation of love as a warm and sunny room full of hugs and kind words.  His father's love, however, was more practical than demonstrative.  He probably believed in long-term acts of love such as a warm house in the morning, building a college fund, fixing up an old car for him to have later...The author learns that love has many unexplored, or rather unexpected, rooms that may not always bear the face we expect to see.