YOUR BIG BLACK BABY


When you returned to our door
that rainlit eve
drowned rat adorable
mascara drooling
alone
with no one to protect you
but me,
I took you in
As I swore I always would.


I could turn a blind eye towards your experiments
so long as they'd been concluded.
And my eyes were flashed with glorious rays,
when we found that you had discovered a family way of life.


But while once was blind, I now can see
as you grow more agitated
as you grow more voluminous
as you guiltily calculate
and hypothesize
and finally tell me
that your results might not be mine.


And, while I'm loath to admit it,
would hate to be denied collaborative credit,
I accept the possibility,
and offer no change in procedure.


The baby, whether by blood, or body, or brain cells,
is yours.
And all that is yours, I have sworn to have and to hold,
through nightly screams and costly appointments
through private schools and public shows,
through sickness, health, or wicker drawers,
I shall support you and yours.
Such was my vow, and so it remains.
As long as we both shall live.

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