And then one afternoon...

She turned to me and said

There's a circus in the sky

while she and I adorned my lawn
like those tacky plastic flamingos
rosy and small
uprooted after a storm
I wandered around the block
of my brain, eyes closed, skipping, contemplative

Don't step on the cracks

and opened them again
as a puffy clown began to dance
across a field of sheep-

No, not sheep, not in the circus

- of albino elephants
and then I heard the music
roar from the lion's mouth
the green pelt where we rested
our full heads and stomachs
and held hands, sticky from
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
halves we shared

We should have saved some for the lion

wiped our hands on the grass
fresh laughter, clean with dew
only to look back to see the circus gone
packed-up, disappearing into the darkness
and all I could see was the dust
bluely rolling after the caravan
dimming the sky
hurling a goodbye kiss
that pegged us on the forehead
then one kiss after another
cool and wet
as I toddled to the door
calling for her as she danced
open hearted

Come back