We walk around the lake
and you are grumpy
because that boy at the playground
told you Let it Go
was a stupid song
and when you told him
he was a bad person
he said he could punch you
if he wanted to
and I am grumpy too
because I’ve been trying
to get your sister to sleep
in the stroller for two hours
and I don’t want to carry her
because of the kink in my neck
which is when we see her
dressed in black
on a bench
her music stand set up
beside the path
her cello
between her legs
I ask her
if she’ll play us something
and she’s shy so I can’t hear
what she says
but the music comes
rich and throaty
and sad like what I imagine
an oak tree would sound like
if it mourned
she finishes
and tells me
that was St. James Infirmary
I tell her
she should record it
because it put my daughter
to sleep and parents
would pay a lot for that
and you have been quiet
the whole time
in some kind of rapture
so I ask
what did you think, lovebug
wondering if we will buy
a cello today or tomorrow
and then you answer
your face still bright
with reverence
I love her rainbow socks.