“Are you travelling alone?” he asks, concerned
“What time is the flight?
Where will you be staying?
Have you booked a cab?”
“I can handle it,” I say
“I’m a grown woman
I’ve traveled places alone
Its not the first.”
“I know. But it’s always been on work
With an chauffeur driven car
And the company overseeing
This is not the same.”
“Yes,” I admit
Feeling a little nervous
It is a first. “But you’ll be there,” I reply
Confidence enveloping me
“I will,” he says, softly
“But its not the same anymore.”
But for me it is
I feel stronger, knowing.
“Was it difficult for you to get here?” he asks
His eyes lighting up, as I walk in
“How was the journey?
“Did you have your lunch?”
His wrinkled skin dangles as he speaks
And his bones –
I see them through his trousers
like a cloth-hanger they hold his attire
“How were your exams?” he asks his grandchild
“Ok,” she says, stunned into silence
The finger she held to go to school
Now holds on to her as he speaks
“That’s good,” he says
“So you’re happy?”
She nods her head
He pats her head, satisfied.
“It’s good you came
Your mother couldn’t have
made it without you,” he looks at me.
It makes her smile.
It makes me smile too.
Reminds me
How it irked me once
Yet how much it pleases me now
Measured and unsure
Slow and staggered
His every step
He holds on for support
But he checks my ticket
To see the flight’s on time
“Take care of yourself,”
“And the children,” his voice is steady.
I kiss him goodbye
His invincible spirit smiles
It is my armor
My savior, my shelter
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