I was like a vapor in the blue summer air and knew no bounds.
– Simone de Beauvoir
Come out, he told us, as we looked up from our game.
We put down all our GI Joes and assorted dolls
to see the fruits of the labor which he had sown in May.
Children listen carefully when grandfather calls.
We passed the hall and the fence where wild honeysuckles grew
and you’ve never been so close, for you’d be worse for a mere lick,
to the ears of the lady’s elephant, rivers of morning dew drops—
we heard that only a few can cure fever when you are sick.
I saw a little light in his eye. We stepped on the grass:
I just passed a packet of chickpeas that my sister said were vegetables,
(It’s funny how those memories are embellished by their performances),
Grandfather saw his life and told us its meaning.
Her hands held cucumbers: There were two she would choose.
We leaned closer to look: long and green and thick.
