Summer Repose

Summer is for stretchpants;

all day long.

Summer is for sleeping in until 8:30 or so…

Summer is for shopping;

one dinner at a time,

perusing the market for the most colorful and fresh things to eat,

spending the late afternoon chopping vegetables and mincing garlic while listening to public radio,

Summer is for sitting with cats on the ground,

giving them sticks, strings, and brown paper bags to attack,

Summer is for stretching and organizing sweater boxes in between yoga poses,

 

Summer is for seeing friends old and new,

walking and talking through the park,

Summer is for dropping off a bag of treasures at the Goodwill, 

then sifting through their shelves for an 8x10” frame for a new print, that is exactly two dollars and fifty cents,

Summer is for salvaging empty bottles of olive oil, hair conditioner, and spices, and taking them, to be refilled;

instead of recycled or thrown away.

Summer is for standing back;

noticing the walls,

the space between two pictures, 

the food smeared above the trash can, 

the picture frames slightly tilting,

Summer is for conquering the cords competing for the same electrical outlet,

zip tying them together,

Summer is for hammering a nail or two into the wall,

leveling out the pictures on the wall, 

adding one or two,

sponging off the smudges of sauce and coffee grounds from the countertops,

listening to the cars zoom past,

and the sparrows making their nests.

Worthwhile

Travel

Is the -

backache, headache, swollen knee, and heartburn worth it?

Scratched up, a little bit burned,

disheveled, disoriented, sleep deprived,

Taking time, taking a risk to go somewhere new,

May leave you battered, blistered and catching the flu.

Wandering around,

stuttering at strangers,

misplacing important papers,

Desperately in need of a two-hour… shower.

Last minute change of plans,

takes a toll, and does demand,

unworldly patience-

Sleep walking through the street,

bumps all over forgot the deet,

Assuming your traveling companions know which route to take,

can be a terrible mistake..

feathers get ruffled, at mention of walking further,

Why not take an Uber or a taxi? Instead of a bus/subway combo?

Mom and Dad conspire together because they know,

They will save at least thirty bucks, if we take public transportation,

Still, the trio holds it together, 

Regrouping amid lots and lots of coffee,

Dazed and confused,

Walking through the streets,

Supporting each other’s ideas,

Scrambling to the gate,

About five minutes too late,

Was it all worth it?

Could we have done better?

Maybe, … probably, but at least we stuck together.

Yes, and Yes,

And, that counts as a success!