A Decade Past, He Starts to Understand
I forget so much.
The edges of the image are fuzzy,
And I don’t trust me to tell you what that forest looked like.
In my mind, it was this incredible, Jurassic thing,
Untouched and blazing with colour,
Even through my fear.
I remember the fear,
The hunger, the pain of bare feet.
I remember being worried for you,
Young and fragile as you were.
I had to be the guide, the hero.
I had to save you from the witches and the wolves.
When I remember it again,
I realize that I was always stooping a little,
Hand nervously pawing at the air.
I knew every step could bring us deeper into the dark,
And so I pulled your hand close to my side.
You were the one with your head held high,
Standing tall among the trees.
I remember that now.
I’m sure that you were scared, too.
If you weren’t, there must be something wrong with you.
But you made the right call,
Because you didn’t look at the shadows,
But at the gaps in the leaves.
