Little Women
.
I wonder
How much of the world’s
Darkness
Seems blacker
Because it’s happening
In the span of my life
How much more
Do we feel it
When it's our children
Standing
Before
The faltering levees
I have learned
I must wish more for them
Than happiness
We are told
Almost daily
From every source
That our own happiness
Is paramount
We can somehow
Uncover
The elusive land
That exists
Without trouble
Nonsense of course
But palpable bait
I confess
I have turned off the news
My new ritual
Is to spend our immediate hours
After waking
Outside
Letting the glad morning
Wake us up
The rest of the way
Even a suburban cul de sac
Can set you right
If you let it
Now we have taken
To spending
All our extra moments
In the yard
In the street
Under the trees
Last evening
Twilight settled in
We finished our dinner
Birdie looked out the window
To see our very elderly neighbor
Shuffling about her yard
And stoop
“Mommy! Can I take Mrs. Dorothy some butter cake and say hello to her?”
I affirmed
Glory piped up
“I’ll go too. So we won’t be shy.”
Loretta was content
To share with the cats
Off they ran
Into the growing evening
To share their cake
Their smiles
Their exuberant acceptance
With a lonely lady
From another generation
Who lost her husband
Pretty tragically
Last year
She smokes her cigarettes
Her dog is loud
And blind
When they returned
Faces flush
With excitement
I asked
How their excursion
Of goodwill
Fared
Athena said
With happy wonder in her face
“I feel great Mommy! She just kept saying thank you to us over and over.”
She paused and continued
“It feels good to share with Mrs. Dorothy. I’m gonna invite her to my birthday party.”
I guess
The blackness
Only grows
Where you let it
Maybe the small voices
of my children
Shining out
to the brokenness next door
Can be louder
If you look at the news
The darkness
The noise
Seems immeasurable
Not to be trite
Measured or not
It’s no match
For butter cake
Butter cake
Or the immeasurable
Bravery soaked hearts
Of my little women
