Barbwire
We had started preparing dinner,
but when I told her they were grazing out back,
she wanted to go see them for herself. I folded the dishtowel
and put dinner on hold.
I suggested we take scraps
Lettuce leaves, carrot tops, apple cores, …scraps from the counter
The three horses were clustered under the trees,
munching tall grass, not far from the house
Only barbwire, the swing set, and their indifference between us
We tossed pieces of lettuce over the fence, and called out their names
At first they pretended not to notice us,
but finally one pony swished his tail, and slowly, sidled closer
My grandchild held out the apple, with a hesitant hand
At first she was afraid, of losing a finger perhaps,
or her quivering thumb
But, I told her to flatten her palm, hold the apple like a gift
The pony devoured the apple, and continued to nuzzle her hand
Barbwire is no restraint…. And love has no constraints
Sometimes amounting to nothing more than
an open heart, and open hand and an apple core
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