The Eyes of A Child

when magnified, are magnificent

40 LINES // 180 WORDS

Looking through the telescope
What do I see?
I see the planets —
Mars, Venus, Mercury ...

My six-year-old says "Mamma
Let me see too!"
She puts her eye to the eyepiece
"Oh, what a view!"

"What do you see, child
So far away?"
"I see the pixies, Mamma
And unicorns at play."

"I didn't see those, child
Let me look again!"
But I cannot see the fairy folk
Though I strain and strain.

My child has another turn
At the telescope
"Mamma, I see the future
Years full of hope!"

"This isn't a crystal ball, child
It only magnifies
What exists already
In the vastness of the skies."

"Hope exists now, Mamma
And love and kindness
They surround us all the time
They nurture and they bless!"

My child sees more than I do
Her vision isn't clouded
By years of thwarted dreams
And intentions being doubted.

She sees what's there
And the possibility
She knows she can make
Her own reality.

We use an eyepiece
To focus, to magnify
What is in our hearts
As well as what we spy.