Dandelion Wishes

There were moments as a little girl

I would sit on the grass in the spring

feeling the soft breeze. 

I would pick 

a dandelion globe

full of seeds,

something inside me would stir

and with all my heart

I would blow...

and watch it burst

and waft on the wind,

my dreams.

I would squint up at the sun 

to see them float

until I couldn't look up anymore,

then close my eyes tight 

feeling the warmth on my face. 

Looking down

I would pinch the green stalk,

rub the white paste

between my fingertips

until it was spent

and knowing from experience

the bitter taste it would bring,

toss it to the ground.

I am older now.

I have seen my wishes 

come and go

on the wind.

I have tended gardens 

and sat in the shade

of trees I have planted.

The sun 

and the dirt have given

and they have taken away.

I remember that girl,

her eyes

squinting against the light,

her fingers

running over the warm grass,

who held in her heart

a hope

and had 

at her fingertips

everything

I would ever need.