Pink and blue.
Electric blue,
like your running shoes.
I say your feet
are smaller than mine
and you smile.
It is tinsel. Daisies. You blush
every time. You are long,
strong, and blond. Blue eyed. The world sees
how beautiful you are. And I know
you are unstoppable. I hear it
in the voice you don’t yet recognize as your own.
I feel tremors building up
from what you will become.
And soon.
I want to build something for you,
around you. A wall, I suppose, but something better.
I don’t want it to keep you in. I want
to keep the world out. Some of it. I’d allow love,
forgiveness, adventure, and sun.
You’ve had enough darkness.
But I know it builds you. Makes you.
All you need is already with you.
Your mind is your own.
Fill it. Your heart is your own.
Feel it blossom and break
and blossom, as all hearts do.
Your body is yours. Run.
Run to every adventure your mind
and heart hold to.
I’ll stand next to you
for as long as you want.
I’ll shoulder your head
while you cry.
I can’t replace what you’ve lost.
We all lose love. I can’t fix
what is broken, but I can
hold a mirror up, squeeze my arm
around you, say to you
believe.