Lilacs

I remember getting excited when the first lilacs started to bloom.
As a child I would reach up and pick the biggest flower bundle
I could get my little hands on.

And then came the best part…
The search for the five-leaf blossoms.
The rarity amongst the rest. The foretellers of good luck.

Once I found one -
Oh, the joy!

I would show it to my sister.
To my mom and my dad.

And then - quickly, quickly - into my belly it went.
(A tradition, I’m sure, every Latvian family knows.)

Last week I was supposed to fly to Sweden.
To attended a show by a magnetic artist.
To be swept away by music and the magnitude of this event.

But sometimes things change. Our plans need to adjust.
Instead I’m staying in the hospital with my daughter.
(We’re here for a short while.)

Yet every time I look outside my window,
I see lilac trees.

And I am reminded that new opportunities and joy
are always close by.

With love,
E.