A Poem for a Sleepless Grandchild

Published in Move Me Poetry

A Poem for a Sleepless Grandchild

Lullaby and goodnight…

If your room is ever too dark
my little one,
look out the window. See the faint
light of the moon?
It will be there all night
and in the morning
when you wake up;
it will still be there
behind a sky of blue.
Like God is always there,
even when
you can't see him.

If your room is ever too quiet
my little one,
listen for the night sounds:
the humming of the refrigerator;
crickets or frogs chirping; your parents’ voices.
Maybe you'll hear a gentle breeze high up in the trees.
traffic droning in the distance, or a foghorn.

My favorite sound is a distant train chugging over the
rails, the train’s whistle,
predictable as clockwork.
Imagine hopping aboard that train,
lying in a bed of straw,
lulled to sleep by the click-clack wheels
bumping over the tracks.

Safe and secure in your little train car
my little one.
You drift off. You dream.
You awaken when the sun pours through
the crack under the door.
The train slows down… pulling you
into the station.