I saw a little girl on a swing,
and I thought of Bloomington.
No more candy at the mall,
nor trips to the ballet school,
nor coloring books in kindergarten,
nor wearing jelly-shoes,
nor picking cherries and putting them
in ugly metal buckets,
nor playing dress-up,
nor eating ice-cream
on hot summer days,
nor watching opera at night
with my mother,
nor playing in mud puddles
with my brother,
nor losing action figures
in the back yard,
nor tasting lasagna
that I spilled on my shirt,
nor screaming at
the warehouse across the street,
only to hear my echo
bounce back at me,
nor waking at four o'clock
to see Saturday morning cartoons.
nor gripping my fifth birthday,
with Strawberry Shortcake party favors
and a Rainbow Brite cake,
nor losing my first tooth,
nor losing my childhood.