To Lilly (Eight Months Old)
From Your Grandpa

Your big baby smile crushes my heart,
I feel tears welling up in my eyes.
You reach for my feet

because like all babies
you want to be picked up
and held.

Your little heart beats
against my arm and chest.
At the sliding glass door

you look out into the backyard
where your big brothers are running rampant.
The rat terrier scatters

from the rocks and sticks they toss.
Soon, very soon, baby girl,
you will be out there with them

and I will treasure these moments,
more precious than gold,
for as long as I live.