To Baby with Love

She sleeps,
Her skin rose hue,
Her pout,
A delicious window of possibility,
Of all that she might murmur,
In the hours and days and years ahead.
 
She sleeps,
Her warm head cradling so trustingly,
In the nook and palm,                                
And I contemplate all the possibilities,
That lie before her,
Resolute to protect,
To impart only what is good and true.
 
Did you know little one,
That the starling sang all the louder,
And the river’s rush of salmon fin,
Sparkled all the brighter,
For your arrival?
 
Did you know little one,
How your father wept when you were born,
And how I stared through tear-filled eyes,
So full of love,
I felt my heart might burst?
 
Precious one,
So small yet so life large, 
Together we roll out our hearts
And the world rolls out its best for you.
 
She sleeps,
Her warm head cradling so trustingly,
In the nook and palm,
Her fingers clutched so tight,
I rock transfixed,
In love with my daughter.
 
 

Written upon the birth of my baby daughter (2011)