strength

Versions of Home

/ firmlov / Leave a comment 
summer camp is done.
art, yoga, cycling, love.
and home stretch? cooking.
these so-rare smiles
pouring milk for tortillas 
like happy siblings
did you say siblings?
how about our matching twins
with perfect spring rolls?
don’t forget sushi 
made with Chinese expertise
to brighten their eyes
and fufu for all
stirred by girls from two cultures
finding friends at home
these mandazi men
so proud of their puffed product
all the way from home
taco influence
on the next generation 
sharing her home’s heart
this sweet quesillo
comes from home with a sweet tale
(we’ve hit a home run)

CycleLife

/ firmlov / Leave a comment 
"bikes for everyone"
is our summer camp motto
(if not, it should be)
what did we just learn?
first, bike vocabulary:
then, real practice
the best from today?
my daughter's helpful patience
(a prospective teacher)
at sixteen years old
learning to ride can be hard
(a kind heart can help)
childhood bullies
prevented her from riding
till my girl taught her

no award for this
no graduation medal
yet, better than gold

Pandemic Prom

/ firmlov / Leave a comment 
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.)