in praise of lying to children specifically

Robert Lynn

Lie to us about our faces getting stuck this way and coffee
stunting our growth and alcohol making more sense

when we’re older. Buy us a hamster to teach us about death
but instead teach us that their ears magically change 

color every few months. Lie to us and call it an act of love.
Lie to us about an immortal elf that breaks in every December

the way you lie to us about never flirting with our teachers.
Please tell me again about the heaven where

we will all be together again even Nana even the bank teller
who gave us lollipops every time you made a deposit 

and who drove drunk into the bottom of the Rappahannock—
it took days to recover the body—and also the guy on the news

that was vaporized when he tripped and fell into a geyser.
It took less than 24 hours for him to dissolve completely.

He will be in heaven too which is why it is essential
that you lie to us and keep lying to us. The proximate cause 

of everything is eye contact, which is why I have such a hard
time with it. At fault for all of this is looking each other 

in the eyes and maybe touching each other on the arm
just above the elbow and this you must also lie to us about.

The number one cause of drunk driving is learning to drive
but it’s your job to teach us to drive. I met someone yesterday

who looked me in the eyes even touched me just above
the elbow. I lingered for a second but then I looked away.

I had to. Our faces. Wouldn’t it be awful if our faces
got stuck this way.