Learning Parenthood

I don’t know
How to do what I am doing
–Fake it till you make it,
But each age changes the game,
And I am back to square one,
Learning
Learning how to be the teacher,
Who vaguely knows the lesson,
A novice at the most important task,
Of raising up the babies,
But this is how it goes,
As even the seasoned
Don’t really know,
We learn from our mistakes,
And oh there are many!
We learn from the wisdom
The innocence of youth bestows,
We learn,
We learn,
And then we learn again

Look (I’m Becoming)

Look at me,
Look what I can do,
Look how fast I’m growing,
I can tie my shoe,
Look and see what I found that’s new,
I’m curious about everything,
Now hear me read,
Write my name,
You won’t n notice it at first
But oh I’ve changed,
Constantly,
My height, my weight, my voice,
I’ve become my own person,
In that moment you blinked,
I can count higher than you even know,
I can be kind,
I can be wise,
I can be brave,
I can, I can,
Do all the things I couldn’t yesterday
I can be the being you only imagined,
Watch me do it,
By myself,
Your are teaching me,
To have you near,
Even when you are not around,
Look and see before I am grown,
I’m growing, learning, being,
But from your smile,
Your tears,
I see that this
you must already know

Too Tough to Taste

We must remember their pain
Let not unease make
Discussing, recognizing “Genocide,”
in it’s various forms,
A topic too tough to taste,
It is in our history,
It is in our blood,
It is in our now,
The stories,
The memories,
The fears,
The politics,
Of a present world,
That we now shape,
It is our duty to make right,
As much as we can,
And to be the seraphim,
Watching over,
To keep a new pain
From beginning again

Color Theory

Precious child,
You see my color,
But not your alabaster own,
This is the world you were born into,
Me, and the brown plastic babies in the playroom
Are the only introduction you will get to this,
Your little mouth agape
As you ask me in wonder
–A stranger really–
“Why are some people brown?”
And I’ve had a lifetime to prepare,
Tenderly, “Because we all have different skin colors.”
My skin is not an anomaly to you,
But a canvas to be admired,
You will grow and input will develop,
But may you always find beautiful too in
shades that may not be your own