His Eyes on the Sparrow

by Lauren Goodwin Slaughter

1.

Our neighbor Kenny, two, fell
into the pool

just like that.

2.

At the service

I was good and did not fuss
about the wool

too-tight tights
or patent leather shoes

that made me want
to eat.

3.

White carnations

like cake flowers
all over the church.

4.

I worried
about his teeth.

Mine, I kept
in a ballerina music box

with a ring and pictures
of my cat.

5.

I wondered

what clothes
his mother put him in—

hoped for a yellow sleeper
feet unzipped

so he wouldn’t get too hot.

6.

As the hymn began

I sing because I’m happy
I sing because I’m free

with a little noise
my own mom seized me.

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jana September 6, 2010 at 10:07 pm

This is such a simple, powerful poem. The language evokes childhood somehow without relinquishing the awareness of adulthood.

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