My Butterfly -

She wakes, scrambles eggs and smoothes the bed

She laughs, as I yawn and scratch my head

and she slides a brand-new princess comb through the knots in my hair

She holds my hand as we walk there

First day, screams and spit balls fill the air

and I cling, but she nods and I climb the stairs

She waves, til the school bus pulls away, disappears

then sings a song to quiet her fears:

Spread your wings and fly

outstretched to the sky

Spread your wings and fly

My butterfly

Ten years, and then another ten go by

and I move, find a job and find a guy

and I call, with a spring in my step, tear in my eye

«Mom, we set the date for July.»

She brings, somethin' old and somethin' blue,

and we talk, with an hour left and nothing left to do,

and I’ve got … a stomach full of big butterflies,

but she takes my hand and looks in my eyes:

BRIDGE

She takes her grandkids' pictures from the wall

on her last day, she cleans her desk and walks down the hall

Looks both ways and, wonders what to do now, what happens next…

When she asks, I know what to suggest: