She went straight for adventures
the minute she could read,
unlike her mother
who sought the solace of brave
little mice and Briar Woods
well into her teens.
Surprising, sometimes,
how she takes it in stride -
wartime famine and Black
Death, nature's blunt brutality
("did you know that Charlotte dies
after having her babies? That's
how it is for spiders") - following
her heroes into darkness,
braving thieves and wild boar
as they settle the West in a quiet
corner of her room after dinner.
She still prefers the company
of Women Who Dared and
Men Who Made History,
still believes she can conquer
every curve of the world
with little more than a meal
of dried meat and stale bread,
a sack and a compass,
and a notebook for letters home
so her brother doesn't worry.
Lori Boulard
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/0004-chloe-s-stories/
