You place me in a wooden chest Beside the things you could not lose A tiny shirt, an old school picture And one small pair of childhood shoes You say, “Rest here a little longer There may be someone you should meet” Then close the lid above my waiting And leave the darkness warm and sweet Until the day your child holds me I’ll keep our oldest stories near I’ll wait through every quiet season For little footsteps to appear Perhaps they’ll have your way of laughing Or wrinkle noses just like you Perhaps their hands will find my button And love my faded color too You’ll tell them how we crossed the ocean While never leaving your old room How I protected you from monsters And joined your missions to the moon Until the day your child holds me I’ll save a softness just for them Though age may loosen every fiber Love can stitch me whole again One afternoon the chest will open A smaller face will lean inside You’ll lift me gently through the sunlight With memory shining in your eyes You’ll say, “This friend knew me before you And stayed through every changing year” Then place me in those waiting fingers And start another story here I will not ask them to replace you Or love me in the same old way A different heart will bring new adventures And give my life another day Until the day your child holds me I’ll guard the child you used to be Then carry both your generations Inside my cotton memory
