Caterpillar

I’ve been looking at my storied collection of writing
I’ve written a Dutch phantasm twenty poems; Chloe has two
I’ve not written even one to you
Fire girl has one
You have none
I’ve never considered such a thing happening

Some people are just too wonderful for words
They can’t be described by bumbling literary nerds
To me, you are such a person indescribable
Except perhaps via contemplation of the central message of the Bible
One facet of which is that perfection exists
A fact made obvious every second in which your presence persists

I was the first thing you ever saw
This created an instinctive kind of connection
Something of a karmic law
A sort of interpersonal and spiritual confection

We took a dive two years ago
But it just played a part in a larger story
Nothing from those difficult times remains
We have a freshly begun path upon which our journey will go
You weren’t yet twenty, while I was already forty
The divergence that looked like loss ultimately proves to be gains

You make me more than proud
You wear your adulthood colorful and loud
Blessing that could only have been passed to you through a cloud
By angels trumpeting your beauty with shoulders strong and heads unbowed

Whenever I’m brought low by this world of lies
I just think of those Hershey Kisses you have for eyes
Those soft dark chocolate love pies always lift my spirits to the skies
They’ll make a kitten purr, when before there were only meowing cries

This softness that radiates through your visage
Is a true reflection of the nature of your spirit
A unique character that graces the world like a shimmering mirage
For this reason it’s important to work to keep it
The world is going to want to force to you grow up
And your body and your thoughts are going to agree with it

Take it from your old man
A modern day Peter Pan
And while I may not be able to fly
It’s not my habit to lie
The more you gain experience
The more your heart is going to want to die
So don’t let the world numb you with an excess of temperance

The king of this world is going to come after you
He is going to try to crush you and always hack at you
But worst of all he will try to placate and distract you
And try to make some kind of a cardboard zombie out of you
You know what I mean; like pretty much everybody around you

This is the point where I say something odd
It’s cool and chic to put your trust in God
You can still go out and have a good time
You’ll still have all the boys turning their heads on a dime

You’ll have many experiences as someone beautiful and young
Don’t compare a friendship with the source of all being
With a life lived listlessly plugged into an iron lung
You have many adventures ahead of you; much worth seeing

I’m not talking about hooking up with some kind of religious culture
That’s how Satan preys on people like some kind of a pious vulture
If you can somehow kindle the reality of divinity within you
You can be all by yourself and there is nothing the devil can do
And you can even be the only strong one when others depend on you

Don’t let anything distract you from prayer
Don’t let anything cover it with some candy-coated layer
You may have noticed I write of riding my trusty roan
I have no horse; that’s a symbol for the friendship that is all my own
The divine presence that I can relate to in my head when I am alone
All of the ancient knights always had their faithful steeds
If you get one, he will take you everywhere, and meet all your needs
Sometimes he will take you far from those you love, it seems
But he will show you things that never even enter most people’s dreams

Of course here I am, your old man, once again trying to give advice
When I really just sat down to try to write something nice
Because it’s obvious I don’t write you enough
And it’s not like it’s something difficult or tough
But I just don’t have the talent to express how important you are
Superstar

I’ve always called you my caterpillar
From when you were a baby wrapped in blankets tight
About my daughter I unwittingly told a prophecy about her
Because now Alia is a butterfly through whose wings shines God’s light

Fly high, butterfly
Apple of my eye
Blossom and own the sky

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