Do you remember being born
We sat down at the table
I explained this doesn’t have to be
Your real life you can make it up
Recalling our teenage years
What was it that got you here
That made it worth while?
Everyone was writing down their
Answers and I stood up from my chair
I walked into the backyard to notice
Someone had cut away at our
Cherry blossom tree and then
It sunk in how little control
We have over people making
Choices for us even if we set
Boundaries and make it clear
This is our garden
Grandma said that was respect
I went to find my cousin
Who was smoking a cigarette
At the kitchen table
Stripped down with nothing left
I started to do the dishes
Maybe a cup of coffee
Would be nice after all
Looking through family albums
Telling the stories of the most
Important people that had touched
Our lives and the worlds people
Had built for themselves
Having multiple children
I waited for her to come back
I knew she would
She had left her cigarettes here
I decided to have one and
Go outside to find her
The grass was tall and the weeding
Season had begun
I heard her call out-
Just start anywhere and grab a patch!
I set my coffee down and
Began to pull
Tears in my eyes
I remember the folks
I love that brought me here
I don’t know where they are now
But I made a book of photos
To share their memories with
As I began to pull
© GÄ
Poétique 