To Be Found Again

catching up the things that we knew before

like tin cups from an ancient salvage

that because they were once dear as moss to us

shine like pure silver at a barely memorized well

may we find a way to begin again to spell

as with alphabet blocks fresh out of the box

or passed down, chipped with cheerfulness

still primary bright and the butterscotch filtered light

when Light and we were young.how long we have missed

the doll china cracked and partially

covered with oak leaves in the clearing

the air through the screen doors after it rained

when being at home meant everything the summer long

tracing our colouring book castles through the humid mists

the ones we would sing about in every refrain

decked out in finery

of our own green choosing.

how beautiful beyond words to describe

after so much losing

is the possibility it is all still alive

exactly the way we left it.

waiting all this time

to be found again all ribbon bright and

only slightly scarred in the same backyards 

when we least expect it and with the honeysuckle

days, the strawberry vines behind us no longer.

mary angela douglas 30 may 2021