Howard McCord: To the Recently Divorced Mother of a Child with Cerebral Palsy (poem)

To the Recently Divorced Mother of a Child with Cerebral Palsy

I saw you at the gym each morning
For two years or more---petite, blond,
Serious in exercise. Then once, early,
Behind a school bus, I saw you lead your son
From the door, and into the bus.
Another time I saw you together
In the store, your son with the face
Of an angel of astonishing beauty,
But halt in his gait, and distant.

Then I saw a For Sale sign
On your house, and you did not
Visit the gym.
I thought you and your family
Had moved away.

Two months ago, you cam
Back to the gym, twenty
Pounds heavier, and a sadness
In your eyes that was new.

Did he leave because
The angel frightened him?
Did he leave at all?
The sign came down.
I saw you lead your son
To the bus again.

And you are as serious
As ever about
Your workouts.

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