Trip Advisor

You’ve been helping them prepare for the journey
preparing for years. Where to eat, what to eat,
what to do about the dangerous patches—swamps,
fire-breathing dragons, mysterious lights in the distance.
So what do you do when it isn’t the world
with all its werewolves and poison apples
threatening your child?
What do you do when it is their own bad choices,
Monsters of misplaced confidence, arrogance, stupidity,
that chase them through the dark woods,
gnashing sharp teeth, reaching out claws
while your child wanders off the path
you marked so carefully, map discarded in the weeds?
Music is playing so loud they will never hear
your warnings, so it doesn’t matter if you shout
Watch Out or Run or if you give up shouting and
just cover your eyes and answer the phone.