“The tulip field,” he said,
Eyes puppy-wide,
Though I almost missed them on account of my screen.
Not today, I thought,
The inbox as full as the sink as the laundry basket as my List of Very Important Things.
It was the pants that caught my eye.
An inch higher than last week, I swear. His brother’s too.
Everyone warned me this would happen, of course.
The way they shoot up, faster than a field of dandelions, without my assent.
By the time spring comes again, I wonder,
Will you be driving a car, getting a job, calling to check in on a Sunday evening?
So I trade deadlines for hastily slathered peanut butter sandwiches
And we picnic with the tulips.
For tulips bloom bright and brilliant,
But the season is short—
Like morning fog.
Like blinking.
Like last year’s pants.
Beautiful as always. Thanks for the reminder to make time for the most important!
Thanks, AT! You are in the state of tulips now!
Stephanie, beautiful photo, beautiful boys, beautiful poem, beautiful family.
Bless you, dear friend!
Love,
Kathy
Thank you so much, Kathy! I appreciate you!
Stephanie, this poem touched my heart when I read it the day you posted and once again today, Oh those puppy-wide eyes of your boys! As a mom whose kids are now in their late 30’s, I can testify that it goes too, too fast. And this stanza is brilliant:
“For tulips bloom bright and brilliant,
But the season is short—
Like morning fog.
Like blinking.
Like last year’s pants.”
I pray you will write a book one day (in your spare tie!) with your insights on motherhood. And when you do, this poem surely must be included.
Oh, thank you for your encouragement, Maggie! There are seasons for living the stories and seasons for writing them, I suppose!