Here's a poem by my niece, Josie.
It's called I Am Josie. It was sent to me by her proud dad, my brother Carl.
I am Josie
I am caring and generous
I wonder what I will look like when I grow up
I hear piano notes rushing through my head
I see myself having babies
I want my cat to grow up with me
I am caring and generous
I pretend to be a mom
I feel protected around my parents
I touch music
I worry I will hurt myself badly
I cry about my future death
I am caring and generous
I understand you don’t have to be perfect
I say I love my family
I dream of being a teacher
I try to make things fair
I hope to have many kids
I am caring and generous
I am Josie
This poem by Josie was written from the heart. I didn't meet Josie until she was about six. The was three years ago, when I moved back to Seattle. I took this picture of her. She had written all these names on a big piece of paper and when I asked her what it was, she said she was listing the names of all the children she was planning to have. There must have been 30 names on the list. And she had 32 dolls, which she lined up on the staircase the next day.
