The Golden Child

The golden child sits

Upon the chair by her father's bed

His shallow face looking upward

With eyes closed

Didn't he run once,

Didn't he yell?

I remember the day at the park

On my birthday

He pushed me on the swings

The golden child sits, patiently

She prays he will awake

Wondering if she pretends to cough

Will it be enough to wake him

But then reconsiders

She should let him rest

He has been tired lately

The golden child sits, crying

For just a moment

She did not see him breathing

But he is.

The scare catches her off guard

She cries tears of fear

They tell her he is dying

The golden child sits, and smiles

She wonders if the angels

Will carry him up to heaven

Or will his soul just float up alone

She knows he will be happy there

No more pain

But she will miss him

Though she promised to be brave

And she is, because she loves him