Barefoot Season

Lilacs and freshcut grass
The smells of coming summer
The joy of no school
Whole weeks of wearing nothing but a speedo
The perfectly dirty griminess of bare feet
Brown and green from grass and sun
How well they grip the earth
Days thrown gloriously away
Catching garter snakes
Sun crackling in the dry grass
Cold water straight from the hose
Hiding out under the porch
Long long evenings
Running wild outside the house
Sleeping half out the upstairs bedroom window
To see the wheel of heaven turn the stars