I held you last night
So tiny, so perfect,
Cooing, even crying--
Didn't matter -- I was proud.
You fit so perfectly
Around my arm, against
My ribcage. I held you
To my breast and fed you
Life -- my beautiful,
Smiling daughter.
I woke up this morning
Crying, for I had to
Let you go; and smiling,
Waiting to touch your flesh
Again, when you are flesh.
--Barbara E. Prater, 1998
