BY PAULINE SHEN
Copyright is held by the author.
PJ’s on & teeth brushed.
I climb into your lap
on the big red chair.
After a story (or two) I make
my request: Rock with me
a few more times.
Scattered plates of cake
crumbs and pizza crusts. The last
mom arrives to ferry guests
home, & you stroke my hair. “Remember?”
you say: Rock with me
a few more times.
Balled-up tissues daubed
by moonlight. I type, “I
remember,” & don’t mean to
press SEND! “Me too,” you reply from
miles away — Rock with me
a few more times.
Residence air a thick 85
degrees. You’re curled up with the
soft duvet as though it’s mid-winter.
I kiss you on the forehead &
whisper, Rock with me
a few more times.
***
Pauline Shen is a writer and artist in London, Ontario. Her work aims to showcase beauty and courage rooted in unexpected and challenging places. Her writing, art, and photography is published with Amethyst Review, Blank Spaces, Dreamers Creative Writing, Lighthouse Weekly, Quibble Lit, and The Signpost [Dorchester]. More: paulineshen.ca | info@paulineshen.ca | Twitter: @ZenPaulineShen