by Elizabeth Page Shepley<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I strap my shield across my back
I pull on my mask
and button my cloak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m taking my work to print.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I blow my worries into a latex balloon
and let it fly and screech across the room\u2013
Delighting the kid inside.
My belly shakes,
and cheeks glow bright cherry
as I laugh my way beyond my growth edge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My autonomic response still alive
with butterflies and a slight dizzy flush in my skull,
but it is not the same.
The script inside has shifted;
these signals rewired as excitement\u2013
Slashing the fear monster to half-size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I\u2019m off to enjoy the adventure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(inspired by day 15 PAD challenge prompt from 2012: use the following words in your poem: slash, button, mask, strap, and balloon\u2013in any order. It only took me 10 years to get to work on it.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(c) 2022 by Elizabeth Page Shepley<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Elizabeth Page Shepley I strap my shield across my backI pull on my maskand button my cloak. I\u2019m taking my work to print. I blow my worries into a latex balloonand let it fly and screech across the room\u2013Delighting the kid inside.My belly shakes,and cheeks glow bright cherryas I laugh my way beyond my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1351,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n