I walked into my daughter Madeline’s room last night at bedtime and found her already nestled in, with her blankets tucked up and around her shoulders and partially covering her head so that just her face was revealed. She moved only her eyes to look up at me. She smiled. I knelt down next to her and put my face right up to hers so that we were nearly nose to nose and said, “You look cozy, sweetie.”

“Yeah,” she said.

“You look tired, too,” I continued.

“Yeah,” she answered again.

I turned my already very close face around her nose and gave her a kiss on the cheek. With that, she sighed and said, “And now I can sleep.”

“Because I gave you your kiss?” I asked, still close to her face.

Eyes closed, and with a gentle smile, she sighed and whispered, “Yeah.”

This poem is the fruit of that unforgettable interaction and it came to me during this morning’s Elder meeting at the church (which begins at 7:00 a.m.). I jotted a few words on a sticky note I had while someone else was talking. So, here is evidence that I drifted a little this morning. Sorry. I must have been missing her. But anyway, here’s what happened when I sat down at the computer for a moment.

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‘Twas A Long Day

‘Twas a long day, my dear
Were quite busy, you say,
Full of writing and racing, both study and play.
And so now with the sunset, the end of the day
You are tucked in and ready to sail far away.

May I kiss you, my dear?
May I offer embrace?
May I send you t’ward uplands of limitless space—
Where the dreams ponder people, where pastures give chase
To borders so distant, but no finger may trace?

Close your eyes now, my dear.
Let the mantle be so
That your mind may be suited and ready to go
To the treetops and skies and the sun with its glow
While the morrow lies waiting in keep well below.

All this is for you, dear,
Hold my hand, let us leap
T’ward the next day and next day, through troubles so deep;
Through any and all that would cause you to weep.
Cover up, close your eyes, and know now you can sleep.

6 October A.D. 2012
For  Madeline