how could a movie made for children
bring tears to my eyes
and leave a mark of sadness on my heart
for the remainder of the day?

because I’m a mother,
and what I see in this film
is the coming end of
the three girls sitting beside me,
now in booster seats,
whispering, “Is there more popcorn?”
and rocking the seats
annoyingly as all small children do,
and the day when
they too will pack their most
sacred toys in boxes,
ship them off to a storage room
or some new little girl’s house,
stuff their cars,
and drive away to college.

and before i can even blink,
all i will have left of this day,
of any other day that i have with them,
will be a memory.