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Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

I woke with aplomb,

having survived my sixty-ninth

4th of July.

*
this was a jaded, unruly one

given the angry, restless mood

of the country,

this hot, humid summer of 2026.

*

today, I enjoyed the ripe juiciness

of a Colorado peach,

sipped hot tea at our sun-drenched

*

kitchen table, a cadre of watercolor

paints close at hand,

the gentle touch of my husband’s

fingers massaging my neck,

*

our furry companion watching us

with an agreeable look

of contentment on his sweet little face.

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because we have no screens

on our sunroom windows,

I cranked open

the casement glass

following the morning’s

burst of much-needed rain

so that I could enjoy —

with a hot cup of tea in my hand —

a freshet of storm-cleared air

as I patiently waited for

the next rumble of thunder

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lined up along the baseboards,

tucked behind the swivel rocker,

crammed into plastic crates,

neatly aligned in the four corners

of our coffee table —

yes! my shelves runneth over,

stacks & stockpiles of books

some I might not ever read, it’s true

(but they’re there for the taking)

there’s always one or two

in my Amazon cart

but, no matter —

I relish every possibility!

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Photo by Jessie Maxwell on Unsplash

in the early morning swelter

of the day’s promised misery,

a glimpse of my 10-year-old self

as she would have reveled

in the glory of a late day in June

I understand, in that sunshiny moment,

the allure of the season

*

I sense it in the humid air,

the titillation of childhood adventures

the what-might-be,

the who-I might-become —

indeed, the grasshopper-chasing,

dredge ditch exploring, watermelon essence

of our school-year reprieve

*

scolding my jaded self, I ponder

the pickpocketing, innocence-robbing

years of adulthood, and I marvel

at the possibility of returning

to a once-more youthful appreciation

of what-might-yet-be,

of who-I-might-yet-become

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Photo by Javier Miranda on Unsplash

the sky says it’s so —

it’s coming

*

the air is fraught

with heat & humidity

*

shades drawn

crank up the A/C

*

drink plenty of fluids

keep your cool

*

summer is here

for real