Dusk awakens me with fragile
Raindrops
Dancing at my window.
The smell of worms and mud
Brings me back to a red house.
Colorado, where the mountains protect you.
Every time rain moved over the peak,
Mom would look at us with a smile;
Let's … Go … Dance! she would say.
So we'd dance, twirl, leap, and laugh
For youth only lasts so long.
Colorado, where the mountains protect you
Until the world seeps in.

Cheerios …
Food for the heart.
Shelby loved Cheerios,
Every morning Mom wasn't up
I'd wake Shelby and place her in
The high chair.
The smell of baby oil and drool was constantly
Present, but Cheerios always blanketed the smell.
Cheerios …
Food for a soul.

Ladybugs never die.
That nasty house had every color of
Carpet, and was home to generations of ladybugs.
Dad and Shelby stayed home,
Trying to kill them,
While we went to school.
Mom worked 'til dark,
So she never saw the ladybugs.
But the ladybugs never died.

An empty house is a new adventure.
Clorox, carpet cleaner, signs
That said “Take off your shoes.”
A new home for a new beginning.
Four acres, a small town, a home suited
For a family.
A few years pass, some days grow long,
And life flies by …
An empty house is a new adventure.

Stars will watch.
Stars have watched us twirl
And sleep.
They secretly watch us eat,
And play,
And fail,
And learn,
And cry.
Mountains may
Sometimes protect us,
And Cheerios may
Mend a curious heart.
Ladybugs may never die,
And empty homes may
Disguise danger.
But stars will always be