Perennial

You are my little perennial

I say to her

A propos of nothing

The perfume follows us

Around the room 

It is sweet and fragrant

A flower and a bloom

A long forgotten word

The root of which

Lies at the bottom of our brain 

It is a word we trust

An act of kindness

One given 

In an open field

A place where we can find peace 

Where we are free

And do not need to act 

The thoughts are persistent

The sky is heavy

Our eyelids seep in the heat

Our hair flows in the wind

Like petals swaying on a root

The clouds hang low

Not quite white on blue

A muted colour

Like the tiny steps we make

I am glad she is always with me

Always the same

My little lode stone 

My constant

My love

My friend. 

Way Station

When can we stop for a break 

She asks

When we are neither

Here or there

I reply

What a curious riddle

Perhaps it means

In the middle

Our feet are tired and dusty

Our heads throb

In the heat

We have been walking 

And pacing

For far too long

Round and round in circles

She sings

In a way it is soothing

Like following a pattern

Or singing the chorus

Of a song

I like singing 

She whispers

Taps the toes

Of her shiny shoes together

Her hand reaches for mine

And I stroke her tiny fingers

Let's say this is our way station

Sit down and rest

That sounds like a very fine plan indeed

We both take a deep breath

And lean into the cool walls. 

Violin

Alice rubs her belly

And picks up the violin

The strings are broken

And rest on the bridge 

The sound is brittle 

Like husks of corn 

Cut off at the tip

It is like cats singing

But I do not protest

I like to see her play 

I would not like to be the person

Who ruins her fun

Her tiny fingers

Caress the frets 

She looks content

Peaceful and happy

I like keeping our world

This way

It feels complete

Not a place to die

But a place to live

She puts down the violin

We will eat cake

And drink sweet tea

Today we made music

Tomorrow we will sing.

Small Poems

The rain falls on 

Alice’s face

She giggles

The rain falls on

My face

I cry

We are walking

We feel both

Heavy and light

High and low

Perhaps tomorrow

We will make cakes

She will lick 

The sugar off

Her fingers

I will giggle

The day after tomorrow

Will come

We will feel glad

Each day offers up

One small poem

We collect them up

Like stars

Turn them into magic 

Just like us

We giggle. 

Heavenly Bones

Do all dogs go to heaven

She asks

We are just awake 

Coming to naturally 

I take a sip of water

Of course they do

I reply

They are heavenly bones 

All brave creatures

Should be allowed to travel 

To the next world 

Without question 

She says

Wiping the milk from her lips 

I like how limitless

And freely we can talk 

It is like hollering into the night time sky

Trotting on cloud ponies

Riding the stars 

Everything making sense 

And feeling good

We would hate not to think

To ask each other questions 

We think of the creatures that have 

Passed us by

Remember their smell and weight 

Thank heavens Dormouse

Will be here forever

I wonder where animals in Wonderland go

Perhaps they will always be there

Ready for the next person 

Who needs them. 

Arrogance

Am I arrogant

She asks

No little Cricket

You are confident

There's a difference

She gazes into the distance 

For just one moment

Then speaks

So when you are confident 

You believe in yourself

When you are arrogant

You believe you are better than 

Everyone else

Just so

We both exhale 

Perhaps at times it pays to believe 

You are better

Believing in yourself only gets you so far

But makes you kinder

She whispers

We lie down and rub our tummies

Full of sugar and milk

The day is drawing to a close

We do not need to speak

To know if it was a good

Or a bad day

It just was

As they all just are

Time spiralling

Thoughts wandering

Bodies aching and sore.

Bathing Suit

We are wearing our new

Bathing suits

Floating in the water

Like lotus flowers

Open and made full 

We turn in little laps

Our wrists limp

Making tiny flaps

Even smaller ripples 

My memory is fading

Like looking at the view

Through a window 

When we climb out of the water

Our thoughts will fill up again

It will be cold

And our skin will sting

But we cannot swim forever

The air is dimming 

The sky turning dark

We take a deep breath

One more slice of water 

Then gingerly we climb out

Our new bathing suits

Shining in the moonlight.