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Poem To A Smiling Child
by Chris Sorrenti
so small
so helpless
clinging to your mother
for today
tomorrow doesn’t matter
yes little one
enjoy that sanctuary
while it lasts
shining grin
mischievous eyes
playing tag with me
how can I not smile back
despite knowing
what you have yet to learn
eyes then turning in shyness
cherub face
into mother’s soft bosom
then quickly turning back
giggling peek-a-boo
but if you knew
what’s in store for you
how long would that smile last?
the heartaches heartbreaks
responsibilities
all too quickly
this world will have your round peg
fitting into its square hole
so small
so helpless
get used to them little one
for these you will be
all your life
the smile will remain
in some form
though never again
as it is today
© 1999
1,430 hits as of March 2024
02/12/2010 Author's Note: Published in the poetry magazine, Alter Vox (2000), Ottawa, Canada. Produced by Luciano Diaz.
Posted on 02/12/2010
Copyright © 2024 Chris Sorrenti
| Member Comments on this Poem |
| Posted by Joan Serratelli on 02/12/10 at 03:44 PM BEAUTIFUL! I LOVE babies- the fact that they grow up way too fast. Life is precious. I think that babies know life's mysteries. They hold the truth. A truely wonderful write. |
| Posted by Therese Elaine on 02/12/10 at 08:31 PM Ah, how fleeting is youth...life intrudes into the idyllic interludes between parent and child far more quickly than any realize and such moments, though remembered, are never able to be recaptured. A lovely tribute Chris. |
| Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 02/13/10 at 04:12 PM Sweet with a touch of adult sadness. There is nothing like a cherub's teasing smile. I would love to hear a poem from the "so small" child addressed to the adult. |
| Posted by Clara Mae Gregory on 02/14/10 at 11:17 AM So true.*sigh* |
| Posted by Charles E Minshall on 02/14/10 at 08:37 PM This one is well done Chris....CharMin |
| Posted by Quentin S Clingerman on 02/15/10 at 12:55 AM Seeing both the security and vulnerability of childhood in an ageless scene. |
| Posted by Glenn Currier on 02/25/10 at 12:53 AM How difficult it is sometimes to simply linger is such precious moments of bliss without thinking of the darkness waiting just around the corner. I love the way you capture the sparkle that tapped into the child within me in the first three stanzas. Thanks, Chris. |
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