For the Handicapped Child    

Father,
she’s just like all the other kids.  

Except that she has 
the longest, reddest hair
in the whole class.  

Except that she got
a real, live German shepherd puppy
for her birthday,
and no one else in the whole class
has a dog like that.  

Except that she can
say all of “The Night Before Christmas”
whenever anybody asks her to,
without ever getting stuck.  

Except that the afternoon sun
slanting in the window
glints on the metal brace
clamped around her leg.  

Except for all that,
she’s just like all the other kids.    

From Chalkdust Prayer Meditations for Teachers by Elspeth Campbell Murphy @1979