Sunflower Girl

entrepreneur 
winning with her lemonade 
even as a teen

Good Steps

three-thirty a.m.
my oldest’s footsteps. good steps.
intentional steps.

this is not a moon.
this is a lunar eclipse.
(Super-Flower-Blood)

and she’ll be gone soon.
(no early-morning steps).
and i. am. eclipsed.

shadows of loss win
the afternoon shines bright.
(we still have our moon)

graduation day
bleeds into normal doldrums
(life's quick, painful truths)

she graduates now
my baby girl, all grown up
in this Red Rock Land

from prom to vaccine
in a short eight-hour night
(let science save us)

there's no heartbreak here
just my girl, eighteen years old,
ready to face them

sneakers underneath
(pandemic proms are outdoors,
under tents, in grass)

she's taller, braver.
in her silver floor-length gown,
she masters the night

and aren't we a crowd?
this master-mix of humans,
standing on these rocks?

unsinkable us
right below the Molly Brown
(ready to swim. Win.)

graduating girl
ready to face the world
one ray at a time

self-portrait art show
for my two youngest daughters
sunflower, glass shine

first day of first job
(the best COVID milestone)
let us shed this slump

blooming badminton
(a few moments of teen peace
before bickering)