The Rhyme of Innocence

“No matter what your child says or does, stand by them and love them. All of us must find our own way, and live up to our own decisions whatever they may be. Love them stronger than their actions or words, love them because they are your children.” -Unknown

 

Credit, where credit is due.

 

 

Favorite activity: dress up marriage
Most beloved toy: the baby carriage

Her mother made sure to record
Each and every silly award

Swim lessons, spelling bees
And even scraped knees

It was all written down
Like the history of a king’s crown

Deep in the attic was her old wooden crib
And her first “I love mommy” bib

Recorded was the day she learned to walk
And stories, soon after, sharing her love to talk

Next came training wheels
And home cooked meals

Trips to sea
Were with mommy and me

The day she first flew that beautiful kite
Each lullaby her mother sang her at night

Then came kindergarten and soon first grade
These are the places her best friendships were made

Each of her playmates was approved by her mother
She never even considered playing with another

Until one day when she awoke
And realized she felt as if she’d started to choke

Fifteen, she thought, that’s old enough
To be adult and alone and do all that independent stuff

She remembered, she used to tug on her mother’s sleeve
But now all she wanted to do was leave

So she left the safety of her home and started to run
To here and to there expecting nothing but fun

At first it was like a dream come true
But soon the sky adopted a purplish hue

She found some kids who went to her school
And decided to stop because she heard they were cool

She looked up into the night and wished she could fly
They told her she could, if she would just get high

She was new and naïve, but they were the “cools”
So she said okay, and for the first time broke her mother’s rules

Her mother grew worried when the clock struck ten
She had no idea, not yet, not then

She came home in silence, no jacket, no key
Without an ounce of regard for her daughter’s plea
Her mother went on her very first yelling spree

Her mother shrieked a warning to stay in the house
But soon she learned to be quiet as a mouse

And out she would go
With a rebellious glow

She went here and she went there
She died her hair and learned to swear

On occasion she’d miss those trips to the zoo
The ones where her mother was sure to come too

Frequently enough she made mistakes
And sometimes she had the brains to turn on the brakes

When she didn’t, things got out of hand
Not everything turned out as planned

In the same spot where she once learned to share
She learned again, now in occasion of her boyfriend’s affair

She shed some tears, she learned to cry
But some days, it sure did feel as if she could fly

She became a girl who loved to roam
Never, if she could help it, did she go home

There’s the spot where she got caught
Out and about when they thought she was not

Now she hangs out down by the pier
And every top she wears is sheer

Her brother tells
Her mother yells

Her mother is worried and angry and lost
But deep down inside she knows another bridge has been crossed

As a kid they thought she was mild
But seasons change, and now she is wild
No longer her mother’s innocent child.