When I was a girl…

When I was a girl,

I danced outside my dad’s shop,

hit girls that said my dad’s shop was old.

I would play hopscotch with my cousins,

insisting they played wrong and cheated.

When I was a girl, daddy was on the tip of my tongue

Like it was comfort, safety,

Like it was home.

Now,

Now I struggle to say dad and all the synonyms for it.