Leaving
A setting Pennsylvania sun Paints Mother Juniata blood red and Blondie gold. Humidity rolls down Henrietta, And sweat rolls off our brows.
Dandelion manes and dragonflies Dance atop the water. White and Chartreuse plastics flash through the air, Sink and wait our retrieval.
Bronzed Backs breach the surface. Our excited hands rush To seize a trophy, But too often we clumsily fall short.
Whitewall tires litter the river bed, And a slimy algae reveals the dangerous rocks. Jokes and diffidence echo off the banks. We try to laugh them off, And forget the real world awaits us. We will have to leave soon.
Worn-out, water-logged Asics tennis Shoes scrape over the guardrail. The sound of the tailgate latching is Buried deep in my mind; As the truck climbs away, I feel like part of me is left behind.