Child, I Have Missed You

How I love the smell of your morning breath,

Dear boy, who I love more than myself,

Who I let into my bed at night,

Whose wakeful protector I have become.

___

How I love to hold this little body-

Your little body that holds

Creative and naughty mind,

And startling questions.

___

How I love you cuddled in my bed

Before the morning’s rise

Your smile wide, your shoulder’s soft

Your knees bent into my back.

I have missed you, my child.

You have been gone

but you have been on my mind—

With me,

These last two days.

How I love the smell of your morning breath upon my neck.