The Hardest Part
Johnny Cordova
is not being able to tell you about times
like this morning
when I woke up to the sound of Cat Stevens
coming through my bedroom door
and walked out into the living room
to find my daughter, who is now sixteen
and a hardcore punk rocker,
sitting on the couch with a bowl of yogurt
and the sweetest smile on her face.
I put on water for tea
and we sat at the kitchen table
and played a game of cards
and talked about the movie Harold & Maude
and after a while we were both singing along
to those very feel-good songs.
We looked up from the cards at the same time
and laughed
and I realized that my daughter and I,
despite our dark edges, are both hippies at heart.
The thought of that filled me with an easeful joy.
And I wanted so badly to call and tell you about it
because you, having been there through the years
when she would have nothing to do with me,
are the one person in this world
who would understand
how much these moments mean to me.
Johnny Cordova's poetry has appeared in Atlanta Review, Louisiana Literature, New York Quarterly, Salt Hill Journal, Chicago Quarterly Review, and elsewhere. He lives on Triveni Ashram in North Central Arizona, where he co-edits Shō Poetry Journal.
Find him at johnnycordova.com, @_johnnycordovoa on Twitter/X and Instagram, on Facebook as Johnny Cordova, and @johnnycordova.bsky.social on Bluesky.
