Toothpaste Tales

I have a magic toothpaste tube
that has been living in my bathroom
for a while now.
It is squeezed out, and ready for the bin,
but every time I give it
'one last squeeze'
out comes enough
for yet another brushing.
I can see my father chuckling away,
wherever he may be,
knowing that he may be gone, but never forgotten!

As a child I used to seriously hate
the almost empty toothpaste tube
that Dad would insist on our finishing completely,
every last smidgeon of toothpaste squeezed out, ruthlessly.
He would even cut the tube in the middle
to extricate the last tiny bits,
which annoyed me even more,
and I dreamt of an adulthood
of toothpaste extravagance.
I dreamt of wasting whole tubes of toothpaste,
making jalebi squggles with them on the floor,
something that I never ever did.

And I see myself in the bathroom mirror,
squeezing that damn tube till the very end
Not quite knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Even if I wanted to, Daddy, (which I know I don't)
I can never ever forget you.......