I’ve been with my sons all day,

And nothing makes me smile

Like they do, their mischievous chuckles

And grins, their punching bags

And bruised up shins, their deep

Soulful brown eyes.

And nothing makes me cry

Like they do.

Sometimes I think this world is out

To crush our souls and spirits.

Tears come from our eyes

When our souls are crushed,

And many of us become soul crushers

Ourselves, in self-defense.

But right now, I watch proudly

As my two boys stand true

To who they are, and what they do,

And they laugh at the world 

And the would-be ruiners,

As they do it all with a smile.

And so for now, I’ll smile, too, with them.

-jenn