i’m one week away
from the day that
my gift to madeline
becomes something that
people will publicly
judge, both
positively and negatively.
some will praise
the “story,” some will
criticize the writing.
some will find
something to
relate to and
others will wonder
how the hell
i “did it.”
i’m ready for all
of that,
but more than
anything, i hope that
someday my daughter
reads it and
realizes just how
much i love her.