Sidewalk Chalkmark Glory
the day is sunburned and sweltering inside but a cooling breeze offers outdoor salvation under golden ultraviolet rays. i no longer wonder where my joy is. i carry it with me, my ragged heart on my sweat-stained sleeve and a crooked smile for friendly faces. jet lagging behind the night and in front of the day, sleeping lightly until a quiet grey dawn wakes me. the sky turns pink and yellow and orange - all the colors of a child's hopscotch grid and a brightly hued sidewalk zoo left behind for feet and rain to scatter. silence and beauty startled by airplanes on final approach as the sun's western grace warms my back and kids dance down the street, snapping their fingers to a supremes song playing on a tinny boombox. i have been thinking of a gentle smile for weeks, a grin that cracks a demure facade and soft laughter that reminds me what it is like to love. there are still seconds to pass, and thousands of those, but i still wonder how your first kiss mouth tastes. my feet remember familiar movements and patterns, so i jump, land on one leg, then jump again. and the quiet afternoon and a neighborhood cat are my only observers as i skip down the glowing street.