When you Wish

You were a dream I had once, long ago

When I was young and hopeful and free

of the pain of my past, a new beginning unfolding

And you, the binding of that past to present, to the future

A tiny ball nestled on my chest, breathing baby breaths

I conjured you until you were real,

Pinocchio after all the wishing was done, after

the whale and the sacrifice and a fairy’s magicked compassion

Blond hair and blue eyes, where did you come from

in my swarthy sea of Italians? You always said you were

Viking, a long-ago raider marauding along the coast,

leaving behind the blood that would tumble through time,

through DNA strands and couplings and transatlantic voyages

to show up in my arms, held to my breast, a bundle of baby boy  breathing sweet breaths.

You are a dream again. Now.

Images. Conjurings. Memories true and sometimes blurring

around kinder edges that spare me

sustain me, always skewer me straight through. Sometimes

the pain is exquisite, and sometimes

it’s just pain that I gather in around me because it proves you were real

not some fading wish once made upon stars already gone to dust

as if you were never quiet here to begin with.

~TLD

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10 responses to “When you Wish

  1. Poignant, beautiful, painful words, strung together so perfectly. They define love and loss brilliantly. As always, I send you much love and many hugs. How I wish those thoughts and hugs were magical! Love you to pieces, Terri!

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  2. Your heart speaks so beautifully. ❤

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  3. This is so beautiful and moving. Hugs. ❤️

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  4. As always, you have such a way with words ❤

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  5. So beautiful! Sending you lots of love and hugs.

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