Freeze Tag

You skip shoeless across our days
Tender soles unscathed by the hot, rough ground.
You climb our fences, swim in our pools,
Laugh at our conventions,
Because you can
Because you should.

Memorandum: Do not grow up too fast.

Do not follow in my footsteps yet.
Look over my shoulder and see
The path paved with memories
like worry stones worn river-smooth.
Restless, I turn them in my hands
On days when the ground is so cold it burns.
They are a comfort, but a reminder
Of the distance between here and there.

Now my secret gardens are only in my head
and yours are just outside the door.
I see you reach for the door knob
and encourage your escape with a nod.
Take off your shoes and go barefoot in the moonlight
And sink your toes in the midnight grass
For the little girl I used to be.