The Transition

The tying of daisies and weeds
To form the perfect friendship bracelet;
Pantomiming ballet leaps
While waiting at the bus stop;
Being the proud owner of not one
Not two not three not four
But five A’s on that honor roll report card;
Loving your pet hamster too much
That you bathe it and essentially
Hand it an imminent death sentence;
Your first kiss setting your soul ablaze
In a way that incinerates
Your prized classics and
Handwritten letters
Leaving you to pick up the ash
Of what you had anticipated rather than
Easy bake oven affection;
Carving your name in the sand
That made your polka dotted suit
Abrasive from the too-high wave—
Its tentacles contracting around your leg
Threatening to pull you into the dark blue
And squeals and laughter as daddy
Saves you from ultimate demise;
Mac and cheese and cartoons
In the summer break heat with winds
Kissing the lake and hop-scotching
Through your pin-straight pigtails;
Peanut butter and jelly coated lips
And tales of mustangs being tamed;
Letters to Santa detailing
Your most exemplary first tabby;
Daddy bringing your favorite
Stuffed lamb best friend to life
And chasing away the nightmares
Of arachnids and awful boys
By squashing them with his finger-pads.

But when did his hair become the terrain
That you formed snow-suited angels in?
When did you start reading to him
Not Huck Finn but menu items
Because he forgot his glasses at home?
When did you become his mediator
In this intricate technological world?
Your hippocampal compass guiding
You on whirlwind adventures rather
Than he being the omnipotent trail guide.
When did the scrapes on your knees
From falling off your razor scooter
Become his sidewalk casualties?
Treating others how
You want to be treated now includes
Variety packs, holograms, and collectibles
That weren’t available for his generation
Of wartime patriotism and masculinity.
Suddenly the Christmas icicles
Aren’t strewn throughout
The dead and terminal evergreens
And walking anywhere is a feat
In and of itself because his spine
Refuses to give his legs that freedom.
You as his cochlear implant
Will learn to filter particulars
And withhold even items that fill your soul
To the very brim with cartwheeling joy
With the understanding that
His indifference will obliterate you.