years

said the boy
“i’m bored, i’m bored”

said i
“me too, me too”

said the boy
“i want to leave”

and i
“you’re not alone”

said the boy
“sometimes i wonder why
i’m so different than my friends”

and so i sat
and looked at him
and said in earnest
to the child

“sometimes i wonder too
why you and i are always here

and why we cannot be out there
to feel the sun and breathe the air”

and then i looked him in the eyes
and told him what i think is true

“i think that you are here
to show them all what you can do
for only someone as strong as you
can go through all that you’ve been through…”

inspired by a conversation
with a young hospitalized boy
whose age in experience
far exceeds his age in years