There was always a parade
of picnics
And soul music
And posing by public pools
And knowing the electric slide
Fair street fights and foot races
ran parallel to
corner store hangouts
And block party hookups
We played Hopscotch in flip flops
And fell out of Philadelphian trees
And then I got too close
to that beautiful boy at the beach
In my favorite blue bikini
On the ruddy boardwalk
Above stacks of seaweed
and salt water taffy
We stood blushing
And face to face
our knobby knees sticking out
from under our second hand shorts
our summer kiss already floating
On a surface of air
At the center of the ocean
Becoming wishes
Waiting to be blown away
This is when I was red t-shirts
with no sleeves
On green bikes
With boys who used to be friends
watching us like new women
In those times when our summer days
faded into cold midnights
back when I was too young
to play hard to get
but not for the whispered words
of a first love
Author: Michelle Seabreeze
Email: [email protected]
Author Bio: I write poetry because it helps me translate the world.
I hope I’ve written something that is either comforting,
or unsettling, or both:
A Philadelphia, PA native, Michelle Seabreeze is a poet
who has written and performed original work
at the NY Fringe Festival, Inspired Word,
Busboys & Poets, Nuyorican Poets Cafe
and Brown University.
She resides in Los Angeles, CA.
Link to social media or website: http://www.michelleseabreeze.net
Main Photo by India Tupy on Unsplash
