Taking Charge

All the unmistakable markers 
present and accounted for, a nice
big bandaid plastered on his shin,
hair thickly dishevelled and an
impish grin on his face, the
second-grader accompanying his
grizzled white-haired grandpa on
their trek through the woods was
more than amenable to ensuring
that the old man would be in safe
company, as the child held the man's
hand guiding him carefully over the
terrain he knows as well as the
back of his mind, newly introducing
the little boy to a world that nature
still occupies, thick with trees
and underbrush and narrow trails
used by both animals in the wild
and adventurous nature-trekkers.
Grandpa allowed himself to be
protected by his patronizing charge
congratulating him on his woodlore
preventing grandpa from stumbling
on restive tree roots that he knew
from brief experience would move
into the way of booted footsteps
with the intention of tripping the
unwary, and he had no intention of
allowing his grandpa to be unwary.