Make believe

When a child pretends to be a ballet dancer,
or a tiger,
or a wolf,
or a conductor beating time,
waving a drinking straw baton at an imaginary orchestra,
and an audience of adults at some family gathering
finds itself temporarily pressed into service
in its various departments,
and smiles and says
"how cute, good effort, well done"
before dispersing
to continue their more serious conversations,
remember that this child is not playing.
This child is deadly serious.
This child's world is no less real to it
than all the worlds adults solemnly summon
with words about stock prices and political appointees
and all the familiar farces and fables and foibles and follies
with which we populate and crowd out our adversities,
calm and navigate the seething surface of turbulent distress
and confer on overgrown jungles stalked by unnamed fears
the genteel appearance of a well-prepared garden party.

Remember that,
when all your best laid plans lie in ruins
and everything has gone wrong,
and everyone laughs,
and no-one is taking you seriously.
Remember that,
when the orchestra you are trying to conduct
gets up and walks off
despite your protests
because it's got something better to do.

Remember that to make anything
first you must believe in it,
and then you must not give up,
until eventually you are that child again,
dancing
and prowling
and howling
and beating time
despite it all.