My Hope For You

You are my heart and upon it

I have etched my secret hopes for you:

My hope that you burn brightly, and long—

That your most heartfelt desires lash themselves

Upon the winds of passion

And that your heart’s love flows

Out of eyes and mouth to the tuneful ears

Of those who surround you.

That hope survives and blooms in the inclement weather

Of disappointment—

That you find and etch your secret desires

For your own child—

And that when I am gone,

That in a flowering corner of your soul

That you feel my love for you—

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