Wonder

She holds the lady bug in her hand,
watches it explore her palm.
She giggles.
“It tickles.”
She puts her hand beside the mound of dried leaves
gently urges LadyBug onto it,
watches LadyBug lift her wing covers
spread her wings
and fly away.

Her mouth, a large “O” of surprise and wonder.

Oh, to be four again,
when the world was new,
was waiting to be discovered.

Oh, to be four again,
before heartbreak, disappointment, failure,
before loss and sorrow and sadness.

And yet, for just a moment,
in her “O” of surprise and wonder,
I catch a glimpse of that world
when I was four and everything was new.

She slips her hand into mine
and we walk into the next discovery.

 

#Poetry #Poem #Childhood #MargaretGHanna