DAUGHTERHOOD (pricklypear)

That unmistakable mirror 

Of parenthood 

Stares back

With eyes of gold

Impassioned

Firm

Unblinking 

Beyond bold

Deeper brown 

Than even my own

But as i swim closer to the shore

I feel land 

I sense home

In those eyes

Beneath which 

I...

Feel it all

All the rivers of beauty 

And laver

And thunder

And warmth

Not yet a woman

But a little girl no more.

The tautness of her demeanor

Speaks of rivers running deep

Unable to reach the surface

Her words struggle 

To breathe

This i know

The smell of her tears

Before they’ve even begun

Shows the softness 

Of her feelings

The fear of coming undone 

And apart

At the seams

Still water runs deep

(In her)

Invisible stillness

Causes a breach

(In me)

This i see

My beautiful prickly pear

Into this mirror of us

I stare

And see you in full

Old eyes Eva

As you’ve always been 

This armour of your gait

Could never fool me

As skies fall into mountains 

And rivers turn to sea

Our love crosses borders 

In each other 

We find peace.