protecting public media, nature, & the idea of my father

i retreat to the garden of my childhood.
my swing had grown into the tree, a
shelter i used on a warm, wet day
where i couldn't dare take an interest in
what the adults were doing. 

sometime in that same summer, i surrounded
a small tree with marigolds of warm-toned
varieties and made a fan of their descriptors.
i changed the channel from SuperWhy to
Wizards of Waverly Place and made fun
of the juvenile shows no one watches anymore.

 as i reenter the present,
i find myself equidistant to and from my homes.
i imagine the walk through the jungle of elephant ears,
babbling waterfalls, and fish who will outlive me.
i mourn the 26-year-old 
who fought for a Tickle-Me Elmo—the IT toy of 2006.
i despise the baby who pushed it away,
who changed the channel, who rolled her eyes.
please hold me in your arms.

Ada Cobbs

Ada Cobbs is a senior English Education major at Kent State University. After taking a poetry course for her major requirements, she fell in love with writing poetry, something she never would have expected. Her work revolves around the most important things to her: growth, girlhood, and escaping her hometown expectations.