A Poem: Wishes for Sons

wishes for sons
by Lucille Clifton
i wish them cramps. i wish them a strange town and the last tampon. I wish them no 7-11. i wish them one week early and wearing a white skirt. i wish them one week late. later i wish them hot flashes and clots like you wouldn't believe. let the flashes come when they meet someone special. let the clots come when they want to. let them think they have accepted arrogance in the universe, then bring them to gynecologists not unlike themselves.

Somebody shared this poem with me recently. I'm not sure I agree as I don't wish any of those things for my sons. I wish for happiness, health, for them to be kind souls and to be grateful for their family & friends. I do wish them some hardship, since there can be no challenge in life if everything comes on a silver plate. But I don't wish them cramps.