THE INVISIBLE PLAYMATE

I have a friend named Irwin.
He’s right here, don’t you see?
We have the funnest times, we do.
Just Irwin and me.

Irwin’s big as me, almost.
Almost as tall and strong.
Irwin can throw almost as far
And play almost as long.

We climb the trees and swing.
We skip along the walk.
We jump in puddles, both at once
Or we just sit and talk.

We talk and talk of many things,
Of bicycles and toys,
Of dogs and cats and grown-ups
And bigger girls and boys.

Irwin is my closest friend,
Reliable and steady.
And when we talk, he understands.
We talk till supper’s ready.

My job is setting table
And getting plates and stuff.
Irwin always eats with us
Whenever there’s enough. 

I set a place for Irwin
Whenever he’s been good
And mother smiles and says, “All right,”
As if she understood.

At dinner, she says, “Use your fork
“And don’t eat with your hand.
“You don’t see Irwin doing that.”
She doesn’t understand.

She thinks I think that Irwin
Is sitting in his chair.
But ackshully I know quite well
There’s really nothing there.

I set a place for Irwin
As if to say to Mother
That what I’d like the best of all
Would be a baby brother.

I have no baby brother,
But Irwin’s here, you see.
We have the funnest times, we do.
Just Irwin and me.

Irwin is my closest friend.
To lose him, I would grieve,
Because he’s very real to me
Although he’s make-believe.