Summer X, At the Lake

Under hydrated

Sweaty

Heavy jeans stick to my legs

Mayflies black 

Whip thin tails

A dozen hang in a spider's web

Under shade tree 

Reading

Moving to stay out of the sun

Cicadas sing

Buzzing

I think I may go for a swim

The lake is still

Refreshing

The sun beats down in waves

Floating peaceful

Resting

On a Saturday afternoon

End.

Summer IX, Playing With Matches

The house went up like kindling

Years of growing, learning, loving

Gone

I knew every floorboard's creak

The hidden places in the basement

Dark

Now fire truck bright flashing lights 

A flood of city water rains down

Heavy

The fire, along with our belongings

The pictures, clothes, and books

Crushed

Years of memories now reduced

To wet, bruised, ash-covered

Kindling

End.

Summer VIII, Polar Vortex / Pizza Feast

This polar vortex thing again

We order two large pizzas

It's summer in Kansas

But the wind is cool and strong

My daughter eats three slices

One for each of her years

The hops in my beer taste like pine

I lean back in my chair and smile

We all over eat

A pizza feast for three

Then carry the rest home in boxes

To eat cold on Saturday morning

End.

Summer VII, Power Outage

Rain, rain, thunder

Illumination

Power's out

Sirens in the distance

Child and wife tucked in

Sleeping, dreaming

I'm awake

The storm reminds me of ocean sounds

Takes me back to when I was a child

The swell and crash, the rumble

Nature's patterns rise and fall

A distant memory is like time travel

And the Kansas waves crest and tumble

Carrying me back to the coast

End. 

Summer VI, The Storm

Relief comes in long, grey, wet days

The fever of summer broken by a thunderstorm in late July

We check our basement stairs

And keep a wary eye on the yellow green sky

Summer V, Grief

It wasn't a fun summer

The summer your grandma died

We listened to the thunder

I held you as you cried

I didn't know how else to help

There's nothing, you replied

I'll never leave, I whispered

I gently dried your eyes

The summer rain fell in sheets

We fell asleep, and spooned all night

End. 

Summer IV, Manhattan

Grasses and weeds as high as trees

Dirt on the flint hills winds

We run through the Konza prairie

And wish for summer to never end

End.

Summer III, The Rhythm of the Sea

Nothing

Like beaches long and sand

Crashing waves

Sailing clouds

Small shells

Brightly colored coral

Seagulls cry

I, floating on back 

Crests and valleys

Thinking

Nothing

End.

Summer II, La fiesta fue el acabóse

Endless, high sun dogs shine

Blaring, booming, base beats

Tacos, tequila, tangos spinning

Endless summer laughter rises

Dogs barking, smoke black

Sweat and salt and spices drip

Brimming fruit drinks glisten

Brass music running on and on

End.

Summer I, The Fire

The sun burnt our skin to a crisp

It cracked the soles of our bare feet

It set our imagination on fire

And lit with flame our friendship

The moon shone bright on endless nights

With crackling meats and cold beers

The bonfires brought us together

And flashed high on salty coastal winds

Every summer has a story

A test, a heartache, a desire

And I'll love ours forever

End.