“First Steps”

One halting foot

Following the other,

I toddled into my

Daddy’s beckoning arms.

One shaky pedal

Following the other,

I biked away from my

Daddy’s strong arms.

One melodious step

Following the other,

I walked the aisle holding

My daddy’s loving arm.

One whispered moment

Following another,

I sobbed as I felt my

Daddy’s frail arms around me.

An Ohio native, the author wrote her first poem in the fourth grade. It was entitled “Daffodils.” At that time, she fell in love with the form. She wrote through the angst of adolescence and into the beauties and dissonance of adulthood. She has of late begun to write flash fiction. It speaks to her as another short form. Her first chapbook, Lyrical Legacy, was published in 2021. She has also been included in several anthologies. All are available on Amazon. She has also found validation in several magazines.