Summer begins
with a stack of books
a recipe to try
and a long promised trip to a rollercoaster
that does a loop-de-loop
July,
with its trips to the beach
late lazy nights, and
indulgent
freedom from an alarm clock,
waits just a weekend away
for us to clear our heads
of the bells and busy thundering
toward graduation
that has held us
like a mesmerist
since April
From our hammocks
or chaise lounges
or air conditioned recliners
From our towels on the sand
or inner tubes
or dugout benches
From our picnic blankets
or patio chairs
(ice rattling in our lemonade)
or that shady spot beneath the elm
sometime in July
or the earliest light of August
when summer still owns the calendar
the thought will flutter through our brains
like that dove in the neglected pergola
…I can hardly wait for the first day of school
And in that moment
we’ll look up at the cloudless sky
close our eyes
and think
…soon
…but not too soon
remembering March and April and May
and June
at least the start of June
And we’ll breathe in deeply
the warm air
renewing ourselves with summer
before returning to campus
…not to soon
and changing the world.
bjornpaige 