Rise
In Response to Photo Prompt by Jim Reeves in
Hopes and Dreams of Our Future

As I look upon your face,
Soft and tender
From hours of sleep —
As the sun caresses your cheek,
Asking you to rise
And start the day —
As you stir, loosening
The tendrils of night
Yoking you to a dream,
As your eye lids flicker
And your lips purse,
I see the little boy
Within the man,
Your mother’s first,
A child of tango
And folklore,
Playing soccer
Until night hid the ball,
Fishing in the Parana
With friends at your side,
The kitchen helper
And baby holder,
The oldest,
The one to pick up the pieces
That sometimes fell from your
Mother’s overworked hands.
I see the man who reminded me
That I am a woman when
I no longer knew what that meant —
The man who sings as he cooks,
Rubs my tired feet
And massages away pains
That riddle my back.
I see the man who quotes
Poetry in Spanish,
Sings tangos in the shower,
And dances in his underwear.
I see the little boy who became
The man before me now.
Rise up, little boy who
Breathes within this man —
Rise up and take the hand of
The little girl hiding deep inside
This woman.
