Give Me a Moon Story
It is true, I once danced naked
under a full moon. I would never
breathe a word of this tale
to my children. I danced,
I might say,
swinging my hips mightily.
I have seen the moon,
I might say, lifting myself
onto the balls of my bare feet,
reaching far above my head,
until my modest
mother-blouse reveals midriff,
until I can pluck
the pulsing white button
right out of the sky for them.
I was naked
when I was born,
I will admit.
You were naked.
Someone is naked right now.
On the other side of the world
the moon is full right now.
Why don’t we dance?
***
I wrote. Finally. After a horrible hiatus, wherein I couldn't imagine why I wasn't writing, I wrote. I opened my notebook and discovered the last entry was notes from an appointment with a kind doctor who told us our son has a non-verbal learning disability. This is a serious, lifelong disability that affects all areas of his life. I guess that news kept me from writing. I have much to learn about this disability. I don't even like typing the word. Bah!
posted by jillypoet @ 11:45 PM
8 Comments:
Sorry about the news about your son.
I enjoyed your poem very much, it really captures the magic of the moon and the secrets parents often hide from their children...
this poem made me laugh, my crazy superstitious italian mom and her friends actually danced naked under the full moon once, to ward off evil spirits. this totally brought me back to her telling me about it and my mortification.:)
i'm glad you're writing again. there is power in your relationship with your son (i've seen it in some of your work and in our conversations) and i have to believe it's there for a reason. it will be called into action. it already is.
You're not going to believe this but this morning the prompt I gave my journal-writing students was, yes, you guessed it, Give Me a Moon Story!
I love the exuberance of this piece! Simple words and images that together pack a punch.
My son also had a learning disability and couldn't read. Consonants were okay but vowels meant nothing to him. This was 25 years ago and luckily, his school had a teacher for this. She really helped him, although he never did like to read or even to like school. Today he's a corporate pilot making more money than me! Go figure!
Nowadays, I'm sure the services are even better for kids with LD.
Jilly, tough news. Hard to know what it all means for him, for you....
I love your gorgeous poem. Someday your children will read it, and they'll understand why their mother was such an amazing person.
You manage to pull diamonds from the fire. Gorgeous poem. Rich with images and meaning.
Your son is lucky to have you, as you are him. You know this. I just wanted to say it.
I hate that word too because it's a label. There is always hope.
I loved this poem!
Good luck!
this is a fabulous poem, I really enjoyed reading it.
I hope all goes well with your son. I am glad
you are in NYC area, I am sure you have acres
to some amazing care givers
-Roberta
(birdsword poetry)
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