My last day of the poetry challenge – day 5. I’ve been writing a few bits and pieces about Emrys and being a dad. Thanks for the initial nomination Gene Barry. It was actually a nice little experiment.
Baptism
You still wonder when there will be a blessing,
a day out in a synagogue or church, it doesn’t matter
as long as he’s brought up with something. You pity him,
then ask us – again – what we think happens
when we die? You ask how will he know
right from wrong and list Pol Pot, Stalin, Hitler,
men revered by the religious. You let their names rest
until the subject changes to the latest scandal
in the village – the neighbour that left his wife
for a teenage boy. He is gurgling on the carpet,
wriggling his arms and legs trying to roll over.
He has been building up to this everyday
since the doctor pulled him out and placed him
on his mother’s breast: a ceremony enough for us.