Not a Child In Sight

A stitch past nine on borrowed time, memories come rushing back The Wolf is feasting in Grandma’s bed, Red Riding Hood a snack A Cow gets ready to jump again, but the moon drops from the sky Humpty Dumpty a mess on the floor, Tweedle-dum starts to cry The candle burns for Jack’s last jump, a quickening funeral pyre The stepmother screams, Cinderella hides, her daughter’s dress on fire Little Jack Horner abandons his corner, curds harden and whey runs aground As Mother Goose watches the Grimm Brothers die —not a child in sight to be found (Villanova Pennsylvania: April, 2017)