Boys
Boys
Boys come walking up the lane
Wielding sticks with which they beat
The insolent air
Boys find something dead
In the woods and are told not to
Bring it into the house
Boys grow their hair out in summer
The sun dyes it blonde
But at the root it is winter-dark
Boys jump off the diving board
In ways that make the bored lifeguard
Blow her shrill whistle
Boys fall in love with the lifeguard
Who they know would disdainfully save them
Boys break their collarbones snowboarding
Boys drink a lot of milk
Boys surprise the doctor
Boys declare they’ve decided
To change their names
Their parents try their best but sometimes
Slip up and call them by the names they gave them
Before they were born
Boys ask permission to borrow the cordless drill
Put locks on their doors
Boys dye their hair blue or platinum blonde
Before the sun can
Boys paint their nails
Boys come downstairs one morning
Wearing a sequined skirt
Boys invite a boy to dinner
Explaining abrasively that
They use they/them pronouns
Not all parents would be kind
But these parents are
Boys are frustrated by this kindness
Which they suspect disguises
What their parents really feel
But in time boys come to believe
Their parents’ kindness is earnest
Even after their dad makes the bad joke
After a few glasses of wine
That these days boys won’t always be boys
Boys seem happier
Boys sit at the table long after supper has ended
Talking about something they learned in school
How it is the male penguin who sits on the egg
Boys admit that
It was kind of cool