Young boys pass down the sidewalk -
helmeted adventurers on scooters
racing into unknown lands
just three doors down where two
girls play with dolls and
puppies hide their faces like snakes
amid rows of monkey grass
 
In their worlds everything
is fresh and new and nothing
renders fear or doubt
 
The horizon is as far
as the end of this block
and the future is as
distant as tonight’s dinner
 
It is a perfect October day
crisp without the harsh
heat of days gone by or the chill
tomorrow may bring
 
Just this timeless day exists with its
endless Indian Summer afternoon
and its rich reminders
of once upon my own childhood


© by Randy Cadenhead.
Used with the author’s permission.