Thursday, May 14, 2009

Parenting poetry

For National Poetry Month, I participated in a Poem-a-Day Challenge sponsored by Robert Brewer of Poetic Asides.

monkey mother and child babyI thought I might share with you a few of the parenting poems I wrote during that month. I'll post them gradually so you don't get poemed out.

This first one I'll post here was actually the last one I wrote for the challenge, based on Prompt 30: "For today's prompt, I want you to write a farewell poem."

I wrote it thinking about Mikko's foray into preschool.


Separation Anxiety

Clinging like a monkey
and your wails following me like guilt
to the coffeeshop down the street,
where I write my novel
and count the minutes
till I pick you up again.

Will you become the child
who lets go of her mother’s hand
without a backward glance
and runs to greet her friends?

And am I ready for you to?


----

Incidentally, over the past few weeks, Mikko has become the child who waves me out the door, blowing me a kiss distractedly and saying, "Tschüß," while he starts in on his playtime.

It's been an odd experience.

Photo courtesy Biju Joshi on stock.xchng

2 comments:

Lisa C said...

Oh, so hard to let go. As much as we want them to become independent beings, the thought of them not needing us is so sad. But they will always need us.

I've been thinking more about my poetry lately. I haven't written any more because I just get so distracted caring for a baby. But I might bring out some of my poems from the past. I'm working on a new blog, and poetry totally belongs on it.

Lauren Wayne said...

Oh, I hope you are able to post some more of your poems! And that you find the time you want for that creative outlet. I know I feel more whole when I have plenty of opportunities for creativity, even though it can be so hard to carve out the time.

And thank you for the thought that they will always need us, in some way or another. I'm not especially sentimental, but I get sad thinking about all those milestones passing and watching him (naturally) start pulling away. Such an emotional balance between excitement at the changes and sorrow that he won't stay my little baby.

Related Posts with Thumbnails