Notes in the margin

She never really liked dolls,

or play learning to cook;

Instead, like some distant child

of the gods, she dreamed long hours

away in the garden, preferring 

always the poetry of flowers.

Sometimes, as day slipped into night,

I would stand aside, watch in silence
as she stared intently at the moon. 

"I'm working out how far away it is," 

she would tell me, already, at seven, 

wise beyond E equals MC squared,

"I want to go there one day,
write its story."

Later, she got her wish,

slipping away beneath the curve

of my known world; her goodbye

insubstantial as the morning mist;

her child's eyes lit faintly by a glow

more distant than the measurable stars.

It was a year, (actually a little more),

when the very fabric of time stretched

and like a flower denied water I sought solace,

though from what I was never sure; 

especially when the moon smiled down 

as if knowing something I didn't

Eventually, she came back, her knowledge

honed even further beyond mine,

her notes in the margin re-assuring me

that she never really liked dolls or play

learning to cook; and that she would

always prefer the poetry of flowers.

Reviews

[NoelHC]

I feel a number of different things occurring in this, and have interpreted different ways, it is sweet and innocent and mysterious to me all at the same time.
Well done.

[Sami Khalil]

We should, as this poem states, believe in children and their abilities and direct them and even support and encourage them in what they like to be one day. Dr. Michael Debakey, the pioneer heart surgeon in the world used to like to watch his mom sew clothes and developed that curiosity and even used it in heart surgeries. Just one example...An excellent pen upon this...:)...........

[John Alexander McFadyen]

I may have this wrong but this feels like someone writing about their own passage through time. It again has a slight melancholly but timeless charm, like classic poetry.

[AprilRN1210]

sometimes people touch us in ways that are unimaginable.. the innocent, wise beyond their years wonder of children can do this feat easily.. they soak up everything and say things that catch us off guard.. those dreamers who haven't been tainted by the "ways of the world" can make us think... make us hope.. re-establish our faith in man... we think we are teaching them something, and most of the time, it is us that learn from them... another brilliant piece that is as powerful in provoking thought as it is moving...

[Woody]

an endearing child and an endearing poem. beautifully crafted. you have a magical touch, Beccy.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

beautiful piece Beccy...some just are not of this world...there is some poetic world out there...and they are part of that from birth...
a poetry of flowers, as you so aptly put it...and they forever bloom.

[Frieda P]

What an endearing piece of poetry, and a brilliant kiddo. I adore this one Beccy.

[W.k.kortas]

There is always a danger in a piece such as this that sentimentality may gain the upper hand and undo the good which lies therein. Fortunately, there is no such problem here. There is the sentimental here, but in judicious and measured amounts. It is utterly charming and lyrical, nicely built and well paced--it reads effortlessly, which speaks well as to the amount of effort the writing took.

[Tree]

Children are especially powerful, we should all be wise enough to tap into what they see. what they know. Thank you for recording these images so carefully in the form of poetry, Beccy. It was beautiful, and insightful

Diego

[Sheila Kline]

Your words are well crafted and expertly convey to the reader how this child has a mind, heart and spirit that searches for answers to the unknown, is not afraid of venturing down a different path, and the way you describe her way of dreaming, and of learning endears her to the reader.
This is a wonderful creation!! Please continue to share the words of your poetry heart!!
The poetry of flowers is found in a garden of a field of unending words.......