`MY PAPAS WALTZ` BY THEODORE ROETHKE

My Papa 's Waltz by Theodore Roethke

This is a wonderful remembrance of a single time where the author Theodore Roethke , was a child and he is recalling a dance with his father . He states about how his father smelled , bringing the idea of whiskey to mind . That is a strong smell , and certain smells can easily trigger past memories . Not only does the author state that this is a childhood memory by the second line , Could make a small boy dizzy but the next two lines go on to show that he

was very small , and that waltzing with his father was not easy

One can get a sense of how much fun father and son were having , playing and waltzing through the house . The two were probably making a lot of noise , as the author describes pans sliding from the kitchen shelf . His mother 's disapproval at the horseplay can be read by looking at the last two lines of the second stanza which read , My mother 's countenance - Could not unfrown itself ' Even though the father and son were having a good time , the mother was not able to smile at the situation

The third stanza goes on to actually describe the two as they danced and his remembrance of how his father 's hands looked . As they danced the difference between their size is shown by the lines of At every step you missed - My right ear scraped a buckle ' These lines could also go to show the his father was drinking , and this was the way he danced after a bit of whiskey . This stanza also describes the roughness of his father , though also his being fatherly by holding his wrist while they waltzed

The last stanza shows the end of the dance , when after all of the play was winding down , he patted the author 's head , letting him know that it was time for him to go to bed . Again , this stanza shows the roughness of his working dad by the palm caked hard by dirt , and also the sensitivity of his father , as he is described still clinging to your shirt ' This poem is a wonderful ode to a father who cared much for his son...