I watch you.
You blink and your brown eyes
Take in the world,

Light dancing behind them.

Your hands, once chubby and clumsy
Have grown delicate, daring and clever.
You are a child of summer,
Child of gentle breezes that carry your giggle
With the snap of tiger lily
And the crisp light of starlit skies.

My diva, my drama queen,
How I love to be your audience.
You become a singer, a dancer,
A magician and a poet,
Something different
With each performance.

You blink,
And another year has slipped away.

I hear you.

You sing when you are alone,
Wordless songs of beauty and joy.
Soft murmurs of encouragement
To dolls that don’t believe in themselves
The way that you do.

You tell stories in short bursts
Thinking of the next one
Before you finish this one.

And you laugh.
Oh, how you laugh.
You laugh with your whole self
From your toes to your nose,
You laugh with me, and at me,
And all around me.

You sing,
And your song has grown a bit, again.