Her little hand
Wraps around my finger
And squeezes tight
And her eyelids flutter
In a frenzied flight
Because it’s night
And she is tired
We are just sitting on the couch
Watching her favorite show
I was conned into watching
She had begged me
To not leave her in the dark
And I obliged.
As I sit there thinking
About how lucky I am
To have a beautiful niece like her
I remember that she won’t always be that way
She won’t always be
Wanting to sit and hang with me
My lovely little Bee
Because that’s not how life goes
I remember thinking,
Stella Mags,
Please don’t ever grow up
You could stay this little
And everything could be simple
And we could always be together
Through the fun times
And the not so fun times
Because I just want the best for you
And I know you do too
So just dance the way you do
At night
Without shame
And without care
With your crazy curly hair
Please just stay beautiful
And innocent
Because I don’t know
What I’d do
If it weren’t for you
Even though
You sometimes make me mad
And you sometimes make me want to hurt you
I look at your goofy
Five-year-old smile
And I remember that you are my niece
Then I forget everything
And the whole world melts away
Right before my eyes
Because that is the magic
You hold over me.