Welcome to My Poetry Site
47,213 poems read
“Chasing Summer”
She refused to
admit it
summer
was not coming
to an end
not yet
and never early
Labor Day
was still two
weeks away
the official end
of summer
her mom would
say
when bathing suits
at the dinner
table
were no longer
permitted,
she had time
two weeks
and even though
she was only
eleven
she had a streak
of stubbornness
so wide
that it would
make
a mule proud,
she rolled out
of her bed
wearing a pair
of green summer
shorts
and a thin
tee-shirt
with a pink
unicorn
flying across
the front
of it
she bounced over
to the window
in three hops
then yanking the
cord
to raise the
blinds
all in one
quick movement
and as the
blinds
shot up
her smile went
down
another day of
rain
“This Bites”
she snaps
while trying to
look through
the clouds
for some sort
of sign
that the sun
is only minutes
away
but the sky
was very
dark
and filled with
clouds
that looked like
a bunch of
angry black
marshmallows
that would scare
away
even the bravest
of rainbows,
she decided to
change for
breakfast
she took a
seat
at the kitchen
table
and was munching
on toast
when her mom
saw her
“Young Lady,
you go up stairs
right now and
change
before you take
one more bite
of toast”
her dad
looked over his
morning newspaper
to see what
drew such a
command
at the breakfast
table
only to see
his little girl
wearing a
two piece
bathing suit
sunglasses
and globs of
sunscreen
all over her
body
her dad just
looked at her
and said
“Morning Peaches”
then went back
to reading the
paper
“You heard me”
her mom barks
giving her dad
a disapproving
look
for his lack
of support,
but she was
ready for her
mom’s orders
“Dad,
what’s the date
today?”
he looks at the
date
printed on the
paper
“it’s the 19th
of August, Peaches”
“Thanks dad”
“so that leaves
two weeks
and one day
till Labor day
if my math
is correct,
is my math
correct dad?”
“it is Peaches,
it always is”
he says
without looking
up from the
paper,
“it’s your rule
mom,
no bathing suits
at the table
after Labor day,
which implies
you can wear
them before
Labor Day,
so with that
settled,
I’ll take another
piece of toast
and some orange
juice
to start off
with please”
a piece of
toast
flies across the
kitchen
and bounces off
her forehead
“butter it yourself”
her mom says
“good thing
I had my
sunglasses on,
you could have
poked my eye
out”
she smirks,
her dad
just kept his
head down
and went on
reading the paper,
low flying toast
is not the
strangest thing
to happen at
breakfast
in this house,
after finishing
her meal
which was
one of her
more nutritional
ones
due to the
fact
that her mom
was there
to make sure
nothing covered
in sugar
was the main
course,
after the last
gulp of juice
she spun out
of her chair
and started for
the living room
couch
but only two
steps
into her escape
from the table
her mom shouts
out
“DISHES!”
causing her to
skid to a
stop
“dad can you
get them for
me, PLEASE”
she says
without turning
around
leg in the air
waiting for his
one word answer
of yes
so she can
continue
her dash towards
the living room
couch
but before her
dad can answer
her mom
lays down the
law
“I asked you
young lady”
her dad
lowers his head
into the paper
as she stomps
towards the table
“your lucky I
don’t have any
toast left”
she tells her
mom
as she gathers
her dishes
and takes them
to the sink
and starts to
spin towards
the living room
when her mom
puts her hand
on her head
stopping her spin
and with a
soft motherly
voice says
“rise them off
and put them
in the dishwasher
please”
she pouts as
she completes
her chore
then looks up
at her mom
who just nods
sending her
tearing out of
the kitchen
her dad
yells out
“And Their Off”
as she runs into
the living room
and jumps high
into the air
diving into
the big cushy
couch
and lays on it
with her elbows
on the soft
arm rest
where she was
staring outside
looking for
any sign
of the summer
sun,
but rain
was ruling the
day
she searched
the sky
for two hours
her mom
barely saw her
move
as she walked
by
doing her chores
she stopped
and asked her
if she would
like some soup
for lunch today
“No mom”
she said
“how about some
sandwiches
and potato chips
we can eat
them outside
I’m sure the
sun
is going to
come out
by then”
“well,
just in case
it doesn’t
were going with
soup ok”
says her mom,
lunch time
came
but the sun
didn’t
she only had
a few spoonful’s
of soup
not at all
hungry
and getting more
disappointed
as the day
dragged on
even though
the sun
was still up
in the sky
somewhere
she still hadn’t
found it,
when dinner
time
came to call
she wearily walked
to the table
still dressed
in her swimsuit
tugging a
beach towel
behind her
she takes her
place
at the dinner
table
her dad
can see
the brightness
in her face
since breakfast
has faded
her quick wit
didn’t even
attempt
to show itself
as she pushed
her food around
her plate
“Peaches,
I took tomorrow
off from work
how would you
like to go to
a movie”
her dad asks
but all he gets
is frowns
from her
as she silently
shakes her head
no
“I got another idea
I’ll take you shopping
to get some
new clothes for
school”
says her dad
trying to cheer
her up
but as soon
as she heard
the word school
her neck snapped
around
and she glared
at her poor
dad
“DO NOT MENTION
SCHOOL”
she said slowly
in a very deliberate
tone
“I still have
two weeks left
of summer
and one day,
may I be excused
from the table
so I can go
to my room?”
“you may,
and I’ll take care
of your dishes
tonight”
says her mom
she walks like
a zombie
to her room
with her beach
towel
still attached to
her hand
dragging behind
her
she sits on
her bed
and grabs the
pink notebook
she has on
her nightstand
inside of it
she has a bucket
list
of things to do
during this summer
she has
quite a few
of the items
crossed out
like learning to
dive
which she did
two weeks ago
at her friend’s
Jill’s pool
other things like
getting a tan
which she was
still working on
but it is slow going
her mom
makes her wear
sunscreen with a
SPF of like 1,000,
she hears a
light tap on
her bedroom door
as her dad
pushes it open
to say goodnight
“ready for bed
Peaches?”
he asks her
“yea I guess
do you think
the sun will
show its self
tomorrow?”
she asks
looking at him
with a face
of impending
disappointment
her dad looked
at that face
his little girl
was wearing
and just couldn’t
bare
to tell her
the weather channel
says rain for
one more week
at least
“you know what
Peaches
I see rainbows
and sunshine
in tomorrow’s
future”
her face lights up
and suddenly
she’s filled with
energy
and wants to show
her dad
all the things
in her pink
notebook
she wants to try
and get done
before her summer
is over
her mom
sticks her head
through the open
door
and says
“good idea
you show your
dad
all the things
you want to do
tomorrow
IN THE SUN”
her mom
glaring at her
dad
also knowing about
the upcoming week
of rain,
he smiles
and says
“Peaches,
you show your
mom
all the things
you want to do
I’ve got an
errand to run”
“where do you
think you’re going”
her mom says
as she sits on
Peaches bed side
her dad with
with a big grin
on his face says
“I’m going to get
the sun
get your cell phone
ready
I’m going to call
you back in
20-minutes”
as Peaches starts
showing her mom
all the things
she has written
in her pink
notebook
rattling off
each item
as fast as she can
already getting
excited
about tomorrow
while her mom
is still trying to
figure out
just what her
dad is up to,
after about
20-minutes
her cell phone
rings
she tells Peaches
that she can read
for ten more minutes
but after that
its lights out
she picks up her
cell phone
and its Peaches
dad
asking about all
her little summer
dreams
written in her pink
notebook
her mom tells
him
and then asks
him
where he is
he tells her
he’s at the
hardware store
and then he
starts to explain
his plan to her
after which
there is a long
pause
then her mom
asks him
if he can
really do this
and he reminds
her
he works in
construction
and he can build
anything
and then he
asks her
if she will help
she didn’t even
hesitate
before saying
yes
after which she
got on the phone
and started calling
some of the
moms
of Peaches
friends
to see if they
would help with
the big secret
project
tomorrow at 10am,
Peaches finally fell
asleep
as her dad
and a few of
the men and
women in his
construction
company
worked all night
on the secret
project
going on in their
garage and outside
covered deck,
like most girls
of eleven years
she slept like
a rock
and didn’t hear
a thing
when morning
finally came
Peaches woke up
and ran to her
window
threw open the
blinds
and then fell
to her knees
when she saw
the heavy rain
pouring out of
the sky
she could hear
her mom
calling her for
breakfast
she didn’t change
into her swimsuit
this time
she just started
walking down stairs
dragging her beach
towel
behind her
as she went
but let it fall
from her grasp
half way down
the stairs
her little heart
was broken
as she pulls out
her chair
and takes a seat
at the table
putting her arms
on the table
then laying her
head
on top of them
her mom was
just getting off
the phone
she could hear
her say something
about being here
around 10:00am
it was already
8:31am,
she didn’t even
lift her head
as her mom
sat her breakfast
next to her
“eat up honey,
your going to need
your energy today”
she raises her
head
a couple of inches
off the table
and looks at her
mom
“I don’t know
if you know this
or not mom
but you don’t
burn
too many calories
staring out the
window
at the rain
so I can probably
just get by with
three Fruit-Loops
and a spoonful
of milk”
she says
as she lowers
her head
back down on
to the table
as her pancakes
and eggs
go cold,
her mom
let her sit there
feeling sorry for
herself
watching her sink
lower and lower
into her chair
“honey,
if you’re not
hungry
why don’t you
go and stake out
a good spot
on the couch
and let me know
when the sun
pops out
I was thinking
hamburgers
and hotdogs
for lunch”
she doesn’t raise
her head
only moves her
eyes
and looks at her
mom
and says
“if you think
the sun is
coming out today
maybe you
should go lay down
on the couch
and I’ll bring you
some aspirin
because you have
to be running a
fever
and I’ll save you
the trouble of
coming up with
something for lunch
when the gas grill
floats away
in the on coming
flood
why don’t you
just slap some
saran wrap
over these pancakes
and eggs
and you can
throw them into
the microwave
for my lunch,
I think I’ll
go up stairs
and take a nap
and yes
I know I just got
up
fifteen minutes ago,
so
just to make
sure
where on the
same page
here is the
break-down of
what my day
will be looking
like
I’ll be starting off
with that nap
I was talking about
then I’ll stare
at the rain
trying to burn off
the calories
from those
three Fruit-Loops
and spoonful
of milk
then I’ll come
down stairs
around noon
to eat my
microwaved
breakfast
I’ll try and set
aside ten minutes
for you after lunch
so we can go
over the dinner
menu
I’m thinking
grilled cheese
but I’m open to
any input
you might have
on the topic
then after lunch
probably another
nap
a girl does
need her
beauty sleep
then after that
I am just going
to cry
before going to
bed,
if you like
I could write
all this down
for you”
her mom just
looks at her
her head still
resting on the
table
looking like a
sick puppy
“Ok sweetheart
you go take
take that nap
I’m going to have
some friends over
about 10:00am
so if you’re feeling
up to it
maybe you could
come down and
say Hi”
“sure mom
if I’m feeling
up to it
no promises though”
she tells her
mom
before slowly walking
up to her room
walking right over
her discarded beach
towel
that she had
dropped
on the stairs,
she falls into
her bed
face first
and just lays there
she can hear
the heavy rain
striking against
her window
even with her
face
buried in all
her covers
from her bed
she stays that
way
for five minutes
trying to think
of something fun
to do today
not wanting to
waste another of
her dwindling days
of summer
but she can’t
so she rolls
on to her back
and starts looking
through her pink
notebook
starting a new page
entitled
“Things to do
NEXT SUMMER”
with the word
“NEXT”
underlined
several times
with a black marker
she just stared
at the page
unable to write
anything down,
admitting her summer
was over
she sets the pink
notebook
back down on
the night stand
and pulls all
of the covers
over her head
and screams as
loud as she can
“I HATE THE RAIN!!!”
she hears the
doorbell ring
her head still
under the covers
she listens as
her mom answers
the front door
she can hear her
talking to Jill’s
mom
and she could
of sworn
she heard Jill’s
high pitched
squeaky voice
saying something
to her mom
as she went
through the kitchen
and into the garage
but before she
could figure that
out
she hears a
car horn
and her mom
yelling “HI”
from the front
door
she gets out
of her bed
and heads to
her window
which overlooks
their front yard
and sees Billy
running from his
car
in the pouring
rain
wearing only
swim trunks
with a large
beach towel
drapped over
his shoulders
his dad
walking behind
him
wearing shorts
and a tee-shirt
with a watermelon
under each arm,
what is going on?
she can hear
her mom ask
Billy
if he was cold
after getting all
wet
from the rain
“Nope”
is all he says
her mom
tells him to
head to the
garage
so he could
dry out and
warm up,
the garage
why would he
go there
to get warm
before she can
look away from
the window
a van
pulls up with
Jan and her
dad
Sam and his
mom
and the two
Kelly kids
Rick and Sara
and both their
parents
all the kids
were wearing
swimsuits and
wrapped in beach
towels
and all the parents
were dressed like
they were going
to be sitting by
a pool
and again
she hears
her mom say
for them all
to head to the
garage
where its nice
and warm,
well that’s it
she marches down
the stairs
her mom
still waiting by
the front door
“Mom,
what’s going on
have I gone
crazy
or are you
luring my friends
and their parents
into the garage
so you can
freeze them
into human
popsicles
which you
probably sell
to some race
of giant aliens
because you
and I both know
that it is always
freezing in the
garage
or has all this
rain
finally gotten to
you
and your just
not your self
right now
which is it”
her mom laughs
and says
“well,
I have two things
to say to you
number one is
no more watching
the SY FY channel
late at night
any more
you and your
giant alien stories
and number two
the garage is
totally warm today
if you don’t
believe me
go check for
yourself
but you’re going
to want to change
into your swimsuit
that I can guarantee
you”
she just looks
at her mom
saying nothing,
then with a
compassionate look
says
“I’ll tell you
what mom
I’ll take a
peek
into the garage
and if giant aliens
are not playing
how many licks
does it take
to get to the
center of a
human pop
I’ll bring those
poor people
back inside
where it’s warm
then take you
upstairs to your
bed
so you can
lay down
and I’ll get you
that aspirin
I promised you
I’m sure they
all will understand
you just haven’t
been yourself today
you just wait
there
I’ll be right back”
as she slowly
backs away from
her mom
till she gets to
the garage door
she turns and
grabs the door knob
and notices it feels
warm
she puts her ear
to the door
and can hear
lots of sounds
but isn’t sure
what there from
maybe
it’s the aliens
eating their
human pops
she opens the
door
and is blown
back
by all the heat
and light
that seems brighter
than the sun
and when she
stuck her head
in to look around
she felt like she
was entering an
amusement park
her dad had a
extra big garage
it had a large add-on
he sometimes used
for his construction
projects
but last night
he and his friends
from work
had completely
cleaned it out
her dad had bought
all kinds of stuff
at the hardware store
and between him
and his friends
they already had
lots of the stuff
they needed
they had even
built a pool
inside the garage
which her dad
had got real cheap
it was on clearance
since summer was
coming to an end
her eyes couldn’t
stop jumping around
there was just
so much to see
besides the pool
which they were
able to heat
by running water
straight from the
water heater in
the garage
they had taken
a bunch of
heat lamp bulbs
like you have
in your bathroom
and attached them
all to a large round
piece of wood
and hung them
in the upper corner
of the garage
and they made
a big bright yellow
light
that also emitted
heat
looking like
and feeling just
like the sun
and underneath
that
they had taped up
connected pieces
of cardboard
against the garage
door
and painted waves
a sandy beach
they even had
seagulls
flying through
the air
making it look
just like you
were at the
beach
in front of that
there was a hard
plastic wading pool
filled with fresh sand
from the hardware<
She refused to
admit it
summer
was not coming
to an end
not yet
and never early
Labor Day
was still two
weeks away
the official end
of summer
her mom would
say
when bathing suits
at the dinner
table
were no longer
permitted,
she had time
two weeks
and even though
she was only
eleven
she had a streak
of stubbornness
so wide
that it would
make
a mule proud,
she rolled out
of her bed
wearing a pair
of green summer
shorts
and a thin
tee-shirt
with a pink
unicorn
flying across
the front
of it
she bounced over
to the window
in three hops
then yanking the
cord
to raise the
blinds
all in one
quick movement
and as the
blinds
shot up
her smile went
down
another day of
rain
“This Bites”
she snaps
while trying to
look through
the clouds
for some sort
of sign
that the sun
is only minutes
away
but the sky
was very
dark
and filled with
clouds
that looked like
a bunch of
angry black
marshmallows
that would scare
away
even the bravest
of rainbows,
she decided to
change for
breakfast
she took a
seat
at the kitchen
table
and was munching
on toast
when her mom
saw her
“Young Lady,
you go up stairs
right now and
change
before you take
one more bite
of toast”
her dad
looked over his
morning newspaper
to see what
drew such a
command
at the breakfast
table
only to see
his little girl
wearing a
two piece
bathing suit
sunglasses
and globs of
sunscreen
all over her
body
her dad just
looked at her
and said
“Morning Peaches”
then went back
to reading the
paper
“You heard me”
her mom barks
giving her dad
a disapproving
look
for his lack
of support,
but she was
ready for her
mom’s orders
“Dad,
what’s the date
today?”
he looks at the
date
printed on the
paper
“it’s the 19th
of August, Peaches”
“Thanks dad”
“so that leaves
two weeks
and one day
till Labor day
if my math
is correct,
is my math
correct dad?”
“it is Peaches,
it always is”
he says
without looking
up from the
paper,
“it’s your rule
mom,
no bathing suits
at the table
after Labor day,
which implies
you can wear
them before
Labor Day,
so with that
settled,
I’ll take another
piece of toast
and some orange
juice
to start off
with please”
a piece of
toast
flies across the
kitchen
and bounces off
her forehead
“butter it yourself”
her mom says
“good thing
I had my
sunglasses on,
you could have
poked my eye
out”
she smirks,
her dad
just kept his
head down
and went on
reading the paper,
low flying toast
is not the
strangest thing
to happen at
breakfast
in this house,
after finishing
her meal
which was
one of her
more nutritional
ones
due to the
fact
that her mom
was there
to make sure
nothing covered
in sugar
was the main
course,
after the last
gulp of juice
she spun out
of her chair
and started for
the living room
couch
but only two
steps
into her escape
from the table
her mom shouts
out
“DISHES!”
causing her to
skid to a
stop
“dad can you
get them for
me, PLEASE”
she says
without turning
around
leg in the air
waiting for his
one word answer
of yes
so she can
continue
her dash towards
the living room
couch
but before her
dad can answer
her mom
lays down the
law
“I asked you
young lady”
her dad
lowers his head
into the paper
as she stomps
towards the table
“your lucky I
don’t have any
toast left”
she tells her
mom
as she gathers
her dishes
and takes them
to the sink
and starts to
spin towards
the living room
when her mom
puts her hand
on her head
stopping her spin
and with a
soft motherly
voice says
“rise them off
and put them
in the dishwasher
please”
she pouts as
she completes
her chore
then looks up
at her mom
who just nods
sending her
tearing out of
the kitchen
her dad
yells out
“And Their Off”
as she runs into
the living room
and jumps high
into the air
diving into
the big cushy
couch
and lays on it
with her elbows
on the soft
arm rest
where she was
staring outside
looking for
any sign
of the summer
sun,
but rain
was ruling the
day
she searched
the sky
for two hours
her mom
barely saw her
move
as she walked
by
doing her chores
she stopped
and asked her
if she would
like some soup
for lunch today
“No mom”
she said
“how about some
sandwiches
and potato chips
we can eat
them outside
I’m sure the
sun
is going to
come out
by then”
“well,
just in case
it doesn’t
were going with
soup ok”
says her mom,
lunch time
came
but the sun
didn’t
she only had
a few spoonful’s
of soup
not at all
hungry
and getting more
disappointed
as the day
dragged on
even though
the sun
was still up
in the sky
somewhere
she still hadn’t
found it,
when dinner
time
came to call
she wearily walked
to the table
still dressed
in her swimsuit
tugging a
beach towel
behind her
she takes her
place
at the dinner
table
her dad
can see
the brightness
in her face
since breakfast
has faded
her quick wit
didn’t even
attempt
to show itself
as she pushed
her food around
her plate
“Peaches,
I took tomorrow
off from work
how would you
like to go to
a movie”
her dad asks
but all he gets
is frowns
from her
as she silently
shakes her head
no
“I got another idea
I’ll take you shopping
to get some
new clothes for
school”
says her dad
trying to cheer
her up
but as soon
as she heard
the word school
her neck snapped
around
and she glared
at her poor
dad
“DO NOT MENTION
SCHOOL”
she said slowly
in a very deliberate
tone
“I still have
two weeks left
of summer
and one day,
may I be excused
from the table
so I can go
to my room?”
“you may,
and I’ll take care
of your dishes
tonight”
says her mom
she walks like
a zombie
to her room
with her beach
towel
still attached to
her hand
dragging behind
her
she sits on
her bed
and grabs the
pink notebook
she has on
her nightstand
inside of it
she has a bucket
list
of things to do
during this summer
she has
quite a few
of the items
crossed out
like learning to
dive
which she did
two weeks ago
at her friend’s
Jill’s pool
other things like
getting a tan
which she was
still working on
but it is slow going
her mom
makes her wear
sunscreen with a
SPF of like 1,000,
she hears a
light tap on
her bedroom door
as her dad
pushes it open
to say goodnight
“ready for bed
Peaches?”
he asks her
“yea I guess
do you think
the sun will
show its self
tomorrow?”
she asks
looking at him
with a face
of impending
disappointment
her dad looked
at that face
his little girl
was wearing
and just couldn’t
bare
to tell her
the weather channel
says rain for
one more week
at least
“you know what
Peaches
I see rainbows
and sunshine
in tomorrow’s
future”
her face lights up
and suddenly
she’s filled with
energy
and wants to show
her dad
all the things
in her pink
notebook
she wants to try
and get done
before her summer
is over
her mom
sticks her head
through the open
door
and says
“good idea
you show your
dad
all the things
you want to do
tomorrow
IN THE SUN”
her mom
glaring at her
dad
also knowing about
the upcoming week
of rain,
he smiles
and says
“Peaches,
you show your
mom
all the things
you want to do
I’ve got an
errand to run”
“where do you
think you’re going”
her mom says
as she sits on
Peaches bed side
her dad with
with a big grin
on his face says
“I’m going to get
the sun
get your cell phone
ready
I’m going to call
you back in
20-minutes”
as Peaches starts
showing her mom
all the things
she has written
in her pink
notebook
rattling off
each item
as fast as she can
already getting
excited
about tomorrow
while her mom
is still trying to
figure out
just what her
dad is up to,
after about
20-minutes
her cell phone
rings
she tells Peaches
that she can read
for ten more minutes
but after that
its lights out
she picks up her
cell phone
and its Peaches
dad
asking about all
her little summer
dreams
written in her pink
notebook
her mom tells
him
and then asks
him
where he is
he tells her
he’s at the
hardware store
and then he
starts to explain
his plan to her
after which
there is a long
pause
then her mom
asks him
if he can
really do this
and he reminds
her
he works in
construction
and he can build
anything
and then he
asks her
if she will help
she didn’t even
hesitate
before saying
yes
after which she
got on the phone
and started calling
some of the
moms
of Peaches
friends
to see if they
would help with
the big secret
project
tomorrow at 10am,
Peaches finally fell
asleep
as her dad
and a few of
the men and
women in his
construction
company
worked all night
on the secret
project
going on in their
garage and outside
covered deck,
like most girls
of eleven years
she slept like
a rock
and didn’t hear
a thing
when morning
finally came
Peaches woke up
and ran to her
window
threw open the
blinds
and then fell
to her knees
when she saw
the heavy rain
pouring out of
the sky
she could hear
her mom
calling her for
breakfast
she didn’t change
into her swimsuit
this time
she just started
walking down stairs
dragging her beach
towel
behind her
as she went
but let it fall
from her grasp
half way down
the stairs
her little heart
was broken
as she pulls out
her chair
and takes a seat
at the table
putting her arms
on the table
then laying her
head
on top of them
her mom was
just getting off
the phone
she could hear
her say something
about being here
around 10:00am
it was already
8:31am,
she didn’t even
lift her head
as her mom
sat her breakfast
next to her
“eat up honey,
your going to need
your energy today”
she raises her
head
a couple of inches
off the table
and looks at her
mom
“I don’t know
if you know this
or not mom
but you don’t
burn
too many calories
staring out the
window
at the rain
so I can probably
just get by with
three Fruit-Loops
and a spoonful
of milk”
she says
as she lowers
her head
back down on
to the table
as her pancakes
and eggs
go cold,
her mom
let her sit there
feeling sorry for
herself
watching her sink
lower and lower
into her chair
“honey,
if you’re not
hungry
why don’t you
go and stake out
a good spot
on the couch
and let me know
when the sun
pops out
I was thinking
hamburgers
and hotdogs
for lunch”
she doesn’t raise
her head
only moves her
eyes
and looks at her
mom
and says
“if you think
the sun is
coming out today
maybe you
should go lay down
on the couch
and I’ll bring you
some aspirin
because you have
to be running a
fever
and I’ll save you
the trouble of
coming up with
something for lunch
when the gas grill
floats away
in the on coming
flood
why don’t you
just slap some
saran wrap
over these pancakes
and eggs
and you can
throw them into
the microwave
for my lunch,
I think I’ll
go up stairs
and take a nap
and yes
I know I just got
up
fifteen minutes ago,
so
just to make
sure
where on the
same page
here is the
break-down of
what my day
will be looking
like
I’ll be starting off
with that nap
I was talking about
then I’ll stare
at the rain
trying to burn off
the calories
from those
three Fruit-Loops
and spoonful
of milk
then I’ll come
down stairs
around noon
to eat my
microwaved
breakfast
I’ll try and set
aside ten minutes
for you after lunch
so we can go
over the dinner
menu
I’m thinking
grilled cheese
but I’m open to
any input
you might have
on the topic
then after lunch
probably another
nap
a girl does
need her
beauty sleep
then after that
I am just going
to cry
before going to
bed,
if you like
I could write
all this down
for you”
her mom just
looks at her
her head still
resting on the
table
looking like a
sick puppy
“Ok sweetheart
you go take
take that nap
I’m going to have
some friends over
about 10:00am
so if you’re feeling
up to it
maybe you could
come down and
say Hi”
“sure mom
if I’m feeling
up to it
no promises though”
she tells her
mom
before slowly walking
up to her room
walking right over
her discarded beach
towel
that she had
dropped
on the stairs,
she falls into
her bed
face first
and just lays there
she can hear
the heavy rain
striking against
her window
even with her
face
buried in all
her covers
from her bed
she stays that
way
for five minutes
trying to think
of something fun
to do today
not wanting to
waste another of
her dwindling days
of summer
but she can’t
so she rolls
on to her back
and starts looking
through her pink
notebook
starting a new page
entitled
“Things to do
NEXT SUMMER”
with the word
“NEXT”
underlined
several times
with a black marker
she just stared
at the page
unable to write
anything down,
admitting her summer
was over
she sets the pink
notebook
back down on
the night stand
and pulls all
of the covers
over her head
and screams as
loud as she can
“I HATE THE RAIN!!!”
she hears the
doorbell ring
her head still
under the covers
she listens as
her mom answers
the front door
she can hear her
talking to Jill’s
mom
and she could
of sworn
she heard Jill’s
high pitched
squeaky voice
saying something
to her mom
as she went
through the kitchen
and into the garage
but before she
could figure that
out
she hears a
car horn
and her mom
yelling “HI”
from the front
door
she gets out
of her bed
and heads to
her window
which overlooks
their front yard
and sees Billy
running from his
car
in the pouring
rain
wearing only
swim trunks
with a large
beach towel
drapped over
his shoulders
his dad
walking behind
him
wearing shorts
and a tee-shirt
with a watermelon
under each arm,
what is going on?
she can hear
her mom ask
Billy
if he was cold
after getting all
wet
from the rain
“Nope”
is all he says
her mom
tells him to
head to the
garage
so he could
dry out and
warm up,
the garage
why would he
go there
to get warm
before she can
look away from
the window
a van
pulls up with
Jan and her
dad
Sam and his
mom
and the two
Kelly kids
Rick and Sara
and both their
parents
all the kids
were wearing
swimsuits and
wrapped in beach
towels
and all the parents
were dressed like
they were going
to be sitting by
a pool
and again
she hears
her mom say
for them all
to head to the
garage
where its nice
and warm,
well that’s it
she marches down
the stairs
her mom
still waiting by
the front door
“Mom,
what’s going on
have I gone
crazy
or are you
luring my friends
and their parents
into the garage
so you can
freeze them
into human
popsicles
which you
probably sell
to some race
of giant aliens
because you
and I both know
that it is always
freezing in the
garage
or has all this
rain
finally gotten to
you
and your just
not your self
right now
which is it”
her mom laughs
and says
“well,
I have two things
to say to you
number one is
no more watching
the SY FY channel
late at night
any more
you and your
giant alien stories
and number two
the garage is
totally warm today
if you don’t
believe me
go check for
yourself
but you’re going
to want to change
into your swimsuit
that I can guarantee
you”
she just looks
at her mom
saying nothing,
then with a
compassionate look
says
“I’ll tell you
what mom
I’ll take a
peek
into the garage
and if giant aliens
are not playing
how many licks
does it take
to get to the
center of a
human pop
I’ll bring those
poor people
back inside
where it’s warm
then take you
upstairs to your
bed
so you can
lay down
and I’ll get you
that aspirin
I promised you
I’m sure they
all will understand
you just haven’t
been yourself today
you just wait
there
I’ll be right back”
as she slowly
backs away from
her mom
till she gets to
the garage door
she turns and
grabs the door knob
and notices it feels
warm
she puts her ear
to the door
and can hear
lots of sounds
but isn’t sure
what there from
maybe
it’s the aliens
eating their
human pops
she opens the
door
and is blown
back
by all the heat
and light
that seems brighter
than the sun
and when she
stuck her head
in to look around
she felt like she
was entering an
amusement park
her dad had a
extra big garage
it had a large add-on
he sometimes used
for his construction
projects
but last night
he and his friends
from work
had completely
cleaned it out
her dad had bought
all kinds of stuff
at the hardware store
and between him
and his friends
they already had
lots of the stuff
they needed
they had even
built a pool
inside the garage
which her dad
had got real cheap
it was on clearance
since summer was
coming to an end
her eyes couldn’t
stop jumping around
there was just
so much to see
besides the pool
which they were
able to heat
by running water
straight from the
water heater in
the garage
they had taken
a bunch of
heat lamp bulbs
like you have
in your bathroom
and attached them
all to a large round
piece of wood
and hung them
in the upper corner
of the garage
and they made
a big bright yellow
light
that also emitted
heat
looking like
and feeling just
like the sun
and underneath
that
they had taped up
connected pieces
of cardboard
against the garage
door
and painted waves
a sandy beach
they even had
seagulls
flying through
the air
making it look
just like you
were at the
beach
in front of that
there was a hard
plastic wading pool
filled with fresh sand
from the hardware<