Today’s prompt: “write something that involves a story or action that unfolds over an appreciable length of time.” (http://www.napowrimo.net/day-three-5/)
You Had Your Mother’s Eyes
When you were first born,
You had your mother’s eyes,
Her sleek body, her bullish face,
Her determined yell.
When you were a toddler,
You looked like Elmer Fudd,
Your face and body grown soft,
Rolling and stumbling through your world.
When you were a child,
Your eyes—so like your mother’s, still—
Took on a look of eagerness and fear,
Your face and body lean and rubbery.
When you were a teenager,
You looked angry and hopeful
And full of a lust
You didn’t know what to think of.
When you were a young man,
Your father made his first appearance—
In the fullness of your shoulders and chest,
The length of your leg and sinewy arms
And your newly found sense of superiority.
When you were a man of the world,
You looked driven—
Idealistic and selfish and sure of yourself,
Convinced this was all yours for the taking.
When you were a lover,
Your eyes—so like your mother’s, still—
Took on a look of eagerness and fear
And a lust you were delighted to embrace.
When you were a father,
Your face and body grew soft,
You learned gentleness and selflessness,
Hope and fear and helplessness and power,
And your eyes were filled with wonder.
When you were middle aged,
Your eyes looked tired and content,
Your body at home with itself—
Yours, more than your mother or father.
When you were an old man,
You had your mother’s eyes,
Her sleek body, her bullish face,
Wrinkled skin and palsied hands
Which knew the toll of a life lived well.
John the Librarian 