Anaphora ~ Light from My Birthday Cakes
When I was 3 ~ I wished I’d wear the crown so when Aunty and I went on stage I’d be the little girl with all the glitter . . .
When I was 4 ~ I wished everyone happiness especially my Fairy Godmother . . . I wished for a sister and she came . . .
When I was 8 ~ I wished I wouldn’t die because of all the great big welts that were covering my body, closing my eyes, making it hard to breathe . . . I wanted to walk myself to the potty . . . I wanted to go out and play with all the other kids I heard playing outside my darkened window . . .
When I was 10 ~ I wished so very hard to get my own piano, learn how to read sheet music like I read my Nancy Drew mysteries . . . play with both hands . . . sing old time torch songs . . . and play hard classical pieces . . . to fill our small duplex with lots of song . . . And I wished to give my very tired truck-driving father something to look forward to after his 12-hour days . . . so my little sister and I sang and danced in our Show Time skits . . .
When I was 12 ~ I wished to be a synchronized swimmer . . . be on a swim team . . . wear pretty costumes . . . do underwater stunts . . . dive off the high dive . . . dance to the music of 76 Trombones & Waltz of the Snowflakes . . . glide like a swan on the water and smile like Esther Williams with painted on make-up . . .
When I was 18 ~ I was the girl who got the banner and the crown . . . and wore the title for a year . . .
When I was 42 ~ I wished with all my friends and family at my Great Big Happy Birthday Party we prayed with whole heart & soul that my past year of chemo, radiation & surgery had successfully eradicated the breast cancer and finally I was free to walk forward to love and serve . . .
I am grateful this wish has come true . . . granted the privilege to light 75 candles this past June in the middle of my LexPoMo journey . . . thank you fellow poets for fueling my forward dance . . .!
5 thoughts on "Anaphora ~ Light from My Birthday Cakes"
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Oh–how wonderful! What a blessed anaphora of wishes!
Happy 75th. 💛
I look forward to coming back to these pages and rereading your poetry— and to next June.
Happy Birthday Darlene–I love how you list previous birthdays and chronicle significant memories associated with the passing years…It is like a movie that tells a story of survival and that you are still going forward–Bravo Darlene!
Happy birth month and LexPoMo! I love “learn how to read sheet music like I read my Nancy Drew mysteries!”
It’s been a pleasure to be in community with you!
This is a beautiful chronology of your birthday wishes through the years, with eloquent descriptions. Happy Birthday. Continue to celebrate.
Happy Birthday! What a delightful way to honor the light of you in the light of your birthday candles! Keep on lighting those days until the next cake day!