I name thee!

I name thee: !

A name?

What’s a name

But the hope of what you’ll fit into

An attempt to capture

the aesthetic symmetry of life

A beggar to the well,

echoing that somehow it aligns

A shield and a ward

against the souls who may prey

On a babe in the treetops

Rocked by branches

being swayed

I name thee ‘callous’

For all the hard spots you’ve put me in

for your rejuvenating nature

as a Grade-A nuisance

The build-up of crush that I can’t scrub off

I name thee ‘weight’ for the lack of a shake

in service of making me tough

How you can roll down a hill with not a scratch?

How you hike it again with dirt in your nails?

I know it because you know

my one hope

Is that you come back