Different
As I watch you turtle-
backed go down the hill
to catch the bus I wish
you had a Joey in your
life to go with you, Joey who
walked beside me, brown
foot-high shoe a magnet
for the laughter he ignored,
or rheumy Jean who was so
kind but never used a tissue,
left trails of snot and tears
on all our memories of Grade
Four. Or good old Hubert,
dozy smile and slow
illumination as we plotted
by the woodshed, mashing
bugs and carving towns
from dirt. So simple they
all were, the days I mean,
when everyone was just
a stripe crossed with others
in a busy plaid, a nut
tossed in with bolts
and nails, a dandelion among
the Queen Anne’s lace
and quack grass by the schoolyard
fence, when summers were
still feral and small worlds
forgave us all for being, just
for being. You once fit
in my cupped hands, lay
in the blanket box
for months beside our
bed where we could
hear your tinny cry,
and you could feed
on our imagination:
will you walk, or talk, will
you learn to read, can
you prove the doctors
wrong, and when will
all the eyes and tongues
begin to carve the scars
behind your skin? What
shoes can we make for
your path now, what hand-
kerchief will dry the sea
that rises higher at your door?
1 reply on “Different”
This is very beautiful, and richer each re-reading. Thank you,
Jennifer