Sunny day
age 6
when I was just beginning to feel my own skin
a monarch butterfly landed on my arm
her perch was delicate
elated by feeling chosen
there was no one at home I cared to show
I walked four curving neighborhood blocks to
show my friend
this bright orange and black magic
When I was almost to the house at the end of the cul-de-sac,
large, white, fenced with flowers
a tiny dog came running out from another driveway
the butterfly was gone
I didn’t even see her go because that tiny dog scared me
I froze, went silent, held my breath, screamed inside
The dog ran away
I was terrified
After knocking on the door of my friend’s house
with no one answering
I let myself in
shaking and crying I didn’t go upstairs but walked through the kitchen to the backyard
where I sat on the very top of her giant slide
and cried
felt like hours before I came down
and walked back home
no one ever saw my butterfly.