Children & Parenting
Slow Pitch
How’re you doing? I said & he said we’re undefeated in our appreciation of the game. That’s against incredible odds, he added.
Silver Needle
Each night, all the years we were growing up, she sat in the big yellow rocking chair & pieced together our lives with countless stitches of her silver needle.
Simple Pleasures
this is the moon dark as a bird wing & softer, he said
& at that moment I knew only the joy of my child
Short Nose
When I was young, my grandma always used to say it was good I didn’t get my dad’s nose & I thought so, too, but I always wondered if someone somewhere was walking around without a nose because of me.
Side by Side
We sat side by side in the morning light & looked out at the future together.
Silly in Public
I figured out that if I keep it up, someday I’ll probably get wise enough to be silly in public but I probably won’t wait that long.
Shiny Stuff
One Halloween, my sister made a magic wand & she went around giving wishes to all my friends, but when she got glitter on all the candy they yelled at her & she went home crying & later on my mom made me share my candy with her & she was so happy she flung glitter all over & gave me an extra wish I know didn’t work because I still have a sister who loves shiny stuff.
Sharing
Of course it’s my body, she said, but I don’t mind sharing.
Secret Notes
He wrote secret notes to people he hadn’t met yet. Some of them aren’t even born, he said, but we live in a strange neighborhood & they will need help figuring things out & I won’t always be around to explain it to them.
Secret Warning
He ran quickly with a sound like raindrops & left his handwriting in all the secret places. I found this one underneath the big yellow rock in the garden. It said this: watch out for the little black dog. It can smell when you’ve had hot dogs.
Secret Heart
The secret is not in your hand or your eye or your voice, my aunt told me once. The secret is in your heart. Of course, she said, knowing that doesn’t make it any easier.
Scent
When she wore the hat, even many years later, she could always smell her mother’s perfume & it was hard to remember she was supposed to be alone.
Sabre-Toothed Tiger
If I was a sabre-toothed tiger, he said, I’d bite you up. If you were a sabre-toothed tiger, I said, you’d be dead & that was the first quiet I’d had all day.
Rude Noises
You keep making noises like that, she told him, & pretty soon people will stop talking to you & after awhile all the kids were over there trying to learn how to do it, too.
Ruler of the Universe
Doesn’t really matter who wins this race because they just do it again anyway.
Run Proud
He taught me to run high on my toes. I will always remember his words: run proud & remember you are alive.
Right Tool
My dad always told me, the right tool for the right job, but all he ever had around were a few screwdrivers, so he ended up using the telephone a lot.
Riding the Pony
When I was younger, my favorite thing was riding the pony outside the Safeway. My dad always said I should save my money for something better, but I could ride for miles all over the West & always end up back at the Safeway & all it cost was a quarter & I still can’t think of anything better than that.
Right Answer
What would it take for world peace? I said. Is there a right answer? he said. No, I said. Oh good, he said. I thought this was going to be one of your love-your-little-brother talks.
Riding Home
You may not remember the time you let me go first. Or the time you dropped back to tell me it wasn’t that far to go. Or the time you waited at the crossroads for me to catch up. You may not remember any of those, but I do & this is what I have to say to you: today, no matter what it takes, we ride home together.