Once upon a time
The wonder of this world
filled your eyes
with anticipation
and excitedness
and joy
Collecting leaves and drying flowers
and hours spent drawing
and coloring the wonder
your eyes captured
and took in
Backyard tea-parties
hosting stuffed animals
and pre-school friends
and occasionally Dad
who sometimes finally gave in
to the daily invitations you’d send
You wanted so badly to grow wings and fly
and you cried when you found out
those wishes would never come true
Sidewalk silhouettes
chalked
From Jamie’s house to ours
and you and Jamie
traffic jamming the street
with your battery-powered cars
It seemed those days would last forever
Countless hours of never-ending,
no-hands pogo-sticking
and forever hoola-hooping
until something else of wonder caught your eye
The driveway littered with vestiges
and echoes of fun outgrown
The waggling of lights
on Summer nights
from flashlight tag
and squeals of laughter
and trampolining
rain or shine
until your throat parched
and your legs burned
Now faded
Swept away by the winds of change
We would search the city
for the perfect
tree-climbing branches
from where you would stair-step up
and perch
and hang from
and smile ...
it all looked so easy
And those beautiful Mako Island mermaids
who would converge in the backyard
to swim with you in our pool.
You searched and researched
the Internet
and mixed concoctions
and chanted spells
that would grow you a tail
and let you breathe water
and again you were crushed
when you found out
that these wishes, too,
would never come true
I wish we had learned together
just one song on guitar
that I would’ve paused
just long enough
to help that wish be realized
Hair-braiding in the hot tub
and Mario Brothers on the Wii
and ear piercing with your friends
and college touring with Dad
and learning to drive
up at Grossmont College
Now, all lost, washed away
With the tears of time
Your world expanded
house by house,
street by street,
neighborhood by neighborhood
to across the seas
And along the way,
you learned what to keep
and what to let fall away
Where’d that time go?
Where did you go?
I miss those years of wonderment
And what all those years really meant
Safe places,
safe times,
safe life
Safe to feel safe
in the midst of the night
Now gone ...
In these words and in my heart
I want to see again
The girl with the wonder in her eyes
The girl who dared wish
for her wishes to come true
The secret places
where your tears go
He sees
He wants to meet you there
and hold you quietly
until the anger eases
Still your racing mind
Please know
The Hand of God gently rests on you
and glides down to your hand
to guide you through
these barren times
where the wonder has faded
and bring you to a place
where wishes do come true
and life is safe again
to wish for and see
the wonder of these days
He too wants so much
to see again
the girl
For her to see again
with her eyes
the wonder all this world is
the wonderment He brings
the wonder that never fades
My dear sweet Nalani D -
I love you
So, so much
You are a wonder to behold
And I miss you dearly
I miss the girl with the wonder in her eyes