(for Rosie Just Giel)

Today we have a new family member
who, with some help, has emerged

from her shell to find two parents
waiting for her, along with a brother

and grandparents eager to tuck her
under their wings to keep her warm

and dry and fed—the flock it takes
to raise a fledgling.

Welcome to the world, baby girl.
We have so much to show you,

as we know you have to show us,
as you live and thrive in love,

as your damp wings dry and
strengthen, as you grow—

faster than we’d like—and
stretch, flutter and—

before you know it—
fly.