Cheerios
What are these cheerios?
I didn’t know them at all
Less than two years ago,
Till another mother introduced them to me,
These American loops of sugar and love
And now I know them all too well.
We buy a box every other week or so
And I munch on them too,
Even after brushing my teeth for bed
Because darling ,
I would rather brush again
Than not feel this love from your petite fingertips
Your skin so delicate and soft,
Sometimes they are wet from your saliva
And while it should disgust me
I somehow still swallow them with a smile
From your outstretched hands.
Where you are, there are cheerios
In every room, in every corner,
Under the bed, in between the cushions
Amidst the blankets
On the couch, under the table
Behind the trash can,
Inside the kitchen shelves
On the protruding part of the refrigerator at its feet
Inside my bra- the remains of your tantrum
When you threw them at me,
Mostly they are whole
But sometimes they get crushed under tiny and big feet
And get even more omnipresent than ever.
You love these so much
That you sleep with a small box of them,
I am not sure if you eat any during the night
But the morning floor is covered with them,
We make it a game of picking them up together
It makes me laugh and cry in awe of you.
These small loops of happiness
And love and blessing and gratitude,
Are present in the whole house
But the part that they have occupied forever
Is in my heart
From now till forever,
I cannot tell them apart from you
You are my cheerio till eternity.
