I Was There, But not There

I remember when you:
When were born
When you first crawled
When you first talked

Eyes water.

You fell
You ran
And then you charged ahead.

Throat dries.

You were really good
Then you were really bad
And we all laughed

Lips quiver.

I remember when:
You learned how to learn
You celebrated
And you graduated.

Chest swells.

I remember when:
You were sad,
When you grieved
And when you cried a lot

Heart pounds.

When you loved
Then you cherished
And then you gave life to your very own.

Blood races.

When you had birthdays
Then you had holidays
And then there were the Little Ones.

Lungs collapse.

I remember when:
There were hugs and kisses;
You needed me
Until you didn’t need me anymore...

Body shakes.

I should be easy now for me to
Understand why
You do not need me anymore
Because the Time
Has passed and I was there,
But not really there for you.

Tears fall.
(12/31/20)