Almost a year ago, we invited this boy home for Christmas because he was living in a youth shelter.
We brought him downtown to see this beautiful tree.
And what a year it has been. Challenging in more ways than we ever thought imaginable, and all of us adjusting to this new life of having a brother and a son in the midst of a pandemic.
Here we are, standing under these same lights. And aren’t they still beautiful?
the best mail ever
with a scholarship of hope
to fulfill her dreams
motherhood snippets:
a brilliant purple houseplant
captured in glory
molé for the win?
another failed recipe
to exhaust my soul
oh, but the chocolate
hidden behind the bright beads
of sesame seeds
her anxiety
so present, prescient, painful
and i cannot win
today’s word: defeat
i should have stayed on pillows
and accepted it
my little artist
(not so little anymore)
always new designs
creating Christmas
from the tree to ornaments
all hand-made with love
dream school acceptance
in the midst of this nightmare
that’s 2020
what next, i wonder?
how will we survive all this
with all that we face?
the box comes early
before breath has settled us
into this next step
just a small difference:
American leftovers
versus Honduran
work interrupted
my man carving the turkey
so my boy stepped in
my girls made the pies
and set the grateful table
(we made this loss work)
just the six of us
celebrating our health
in a health-hell year
lost in her paintings
i want them to see beauty
but they just won’t look
hidden behind mask
is my sixteen-year-old girl
(her pandemic grin)
i hope to win her
with walks, drives, conversations
just like the old days
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