Mary E. Lowd - Chestnut Wish (Lyrics)

Based on Mary E. Lowd's short story "Chestnut Wish" from her anthology "Paw Prints Beyond the Moon". Listen on all platforms: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/maryelowd/paw-prints-across-the-moon Read the story: https://deepskyanchor.com/chestnut-wish/ Read the book: https://marylowd.com/books/otters-in-space/#pawprints More music: https://marylowd.com/music Lyrics: All I wanted was to laze on the couch Watching some show with fast-talking lawyer cats Or dramatically entangled doctor dogs But he's chirping nonsense words over and over And I don't know what any of it means So in my head, I start to scream Then he really screams Two otters face to face Whiskers quivering But he's just a child And lowering myself to his level is just demeaning What do you do when you're about to lose it? When your toddler has the moral high ground When the bright shining center of your life Is also your jail cell, grinding you down... Chestnut wish, chestnut wish The squirrel fairy tale says you grant wishes But I don't know what to wish for anymore Don't know what would make this better Strap him to my back, walk down the winding stairs Past the bakery full of nutty foods I'll never eat My reflection in the glass, his sweet eyes over my shoulder That lopsided smile that breaks my heart Tree Town isn't home But it's where I'm living now And I have to make it by in this crazy squirrel city somehow At the playground, squirrel moms chitter-chat "Kits are so wise," they say And I can't relate, can barely catch my breath Just watching my son collect chestnuts all day Hours pass, families come and go I'm drying up like a jellyfish on the sand My tail's gone numb, and I still don't understand He brings me chestnuts, chattering unintelligibly Chestnut wish, chestnut wish Smooth and dark against my paw Chestnut wish, chestnut wish You can't save me from this love Can't save me from these precious moments That are tearing me apart I miss the baby he used to be I'll miss the toddler when he grows Every moment with him is a grain of sand Falling away forever through an hourglass While scratching me in the eye Despite three layers of eyelids I feel so trapped I could cry Chestnut wish, chestnut wish If there were a button I could push To fast-forward through all these slow years Would I push it? Would I? And when I did, would I wish I could push rewind instead? My child brings me chestnuts Stacked in piles around my paws Clutched in his tiny claws Chestnut wish, chestnut wish I wish I knew what to wish for But instead, I'll just keep moving forward #SciFi #ShortStories #BookSoundtrack