Damp newspapers lie bruised on paved driveways
A portrait of suburbia
Sun
Torching skin
Melting me into my former self
Cycling
Sticky tar
Rotting peaches
Catching tadpoles by railroad tracks
Poured them into mason jars
Plucked a honeysuckle
Raised it to my lips
Drank its nectar
Kissed it into the wind
Watched it land on the grassy hill
Where we laid on our backs
Side by side
Playing dead until vultures circled
As the sun set, tossing rocks and clumps of grass cuttings
Till the bats dipped and dove
Collecting lightning bugs until even they had to sleep
And we’d dream about the snack machine at the pool
Bubblegum, bubblegum in a dish
Blow the dandelion, make a wish
Sunburn made me shiver
So I hid inside
A lullaby
Of a new day

A poem by Maura O’Malley

Image credits: Unsplash – Daniel Monteiro / Mike Von

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