on her 80th birthday
It isn’t veneration
But bright delight that you inspire
For how you step forth, new
Taking in each day
with readiness
to grow, to learn, to shine
to let yourself, repeatedly
be re-imagined
New-formed like every wave that greets the shore
And for the ageless, trusting innocence
with which you ride that wave
(of you)
Coursing down the crest
of all that you’re becoming
In the surging, swift aliveness
that affirms you
You remind us
We can jump into that life
and surf with you.
©Wendy Mulhern
December 12, 2012