she’ll be lost one day
words on the back
of a tear-stained postcard

forced to smile at everyone
she’ll remember
what it was like to be small

to have the world at her fingertips
letters written all backwards
beautiful in her own right

one day the feeling will be gone
no longer free to roam,
she’ll have to settle down

it’s what we expected all along
but the tears form canyons on her cheeks

what used to be a halo of curls
now an unkept mess of stick straight hair
sticking to her wet cheeks and damp neck

she’ll write to me
“what’s the answer?”
but just like now,
even then I won’t know

I’ll be just as lost as she
in a world where nothing is ever the same
and just like now,
then I will tell her,

“Laugh all night long
find the one you can give yourself to
heart and soul let it be theirs
because then you know
you’ve got something to live for.

Do the things that make you happy
expectations of others aren’t yours to fulfill
step lightly always, like you do now
and look at the world with fresh eyes.

people can’t taint how you feel about life,
but when you find that your beautiful out-look
is changing to blood tinted pictures,
close your eyes and remember.

Remember the small things
remember the love
remember the warm glow
and your cold feet

then you’ll see,
the pictures will change
to be just as beautiful
as the one you see
on the other side of this postcard.”

my drawing will be
like it always has been.
ball point pen meticulously sketching
three tiny figures
dark curly hair
smiles from ear to ear
swirled sunshine overhead
flowers towering above

at the bottom, barely legible
“love always, forever -
unconditional.

sister.”