You're It

In summer school, the heat was mild,

where Dona wore shadows, unreconciled,

a hoodie draped past face and frame,

invisible in all but name.

She sat in corners, eyes cast low,

and prayed the world would let her go.

Then came a voice, both bright and near:

“Tag, you’re it!”—Dona wished, not here.

A boy with mischief in his grin

declared a war, and drew her in.

He sketched a scowl upon his thumb,

and grinned like she should see the sum.

She almost laughed—it cracked, then died—

but something soft bloomed deep inside.

He saw her, though she tried to hide.

Dona didn’t run. She stayed. She tried.

Then years went on, the world turned rough.

Her home turned fists. she’d had enough.

Dona packed her silence, fled the war,

slept cold on park bench, nothing more.

But somehow, still Solan knew her path—

he found her there, no judgment, wrath.

Just open arms and quiet light,

A borrowed bed to end the night.

He never asked the things he knew,

just pulled her close and warmed her through.

And in his sheets she found a home,

no longer cold, no longer alone.

Fast forward to the babies’ cries,

the sleepless nights, the lullabies.

Her body weak, her past still near,

but in his hands, the world felt clear.

He’d kiss her brow, then hold their child,

his voice all calm, his movements mild.

“Sleep, my love,” he’d say with grace,

while peace replaced the years she'd faced.

And time, that thief, just took its due.

Their hair turned snow, the days turned few.

The house grew quiet, laughter thinned,

though walls still echoed where they’d been.

Their children grown, with lives their own,

they sat in twilight, skin to bone.

He held her hand, she held it back,

together still, no strength, no lack.

And when the dark came soft and wide,

she turned to him…and gently died…

But love, real love, does not forget.

It circles back; it resets debt.

And so, again, Dona stands in shade,

no longer wishing she could fade.

He taps her shoulder, grin is lit—

and smiling now,

she says, “I’m it.”

___________

This poem is inspired by my life with my husband. It’s about love that sticks through more than just the quiet nights; it sticks through the hard and messy nights, and even into whatever comes next—hoping we’ll find each other again, ready to play tag in a new life.