i.

mommy

play with me,

the edict

yelled from backyards

kitchen floors and

single paned windows.

ii.

mommy

play with me,

a modest request,

summons to frolic

and

for one moment

remember again

what it is like

to be swept away

in a hurricane of joy.

iii.

mommy

come

play

with

me

often meets

not nows

followed by

tomorrows.

iv.

mommy

come play

with me:

what would you chance

leaving dishes unwashed

bills unpaid

one minute

one hour

more

to

sit again cross eagle

completely absorbed in

games where rules

change on whim

and jelly is

a primary

food group?

v.

mommy

come play

with me?

mommy

come

play.

vi.

passersby

stand stock still smiling

at the uproar

made by tickle fits

the site of

a full grown

woman chasing

a giggling 5 year old

in googles, terry cloth cape

and rain boats.

vii.

mommy

has

come

to

play.