oh, there is so much beauty around.
my daughters ask me a question,
and a little part of the hardness
that has crystallized inside
as i have grown into this older,
unfamiliar me
starts to melt,
because i am both
renewed by them,
and made even older
and more unfamiliar
still.
i hesitate to answer their question.
we are at the point
when the old answer
is not acceptable,
but the whole true
ugly, beautiful answer
is not yet acceptable,
either.
their eyes tell me at the same time:
we want the answer,
and
we don't.
so i straddle that line,
for one more year.
because i love them,
and because
i don't really want to say
the truthful answer
out loud.
but oh,
do i love them.
and oh,
are they beautiful.


the days get longer from here on in. thanks for reading.
tt