O fleeting flame of summer.
At the end of spring you burst open-
One bold flare in a sea of green,
Your orange petals whisper heat
As the school doors sigh and close.
My son Alex came out on the back deck where I was sitting in a rocking chair, my laptop open and resting on my lap.
“What are you doing?” He asked as he placed his glass of water on the table next to his chair and sat down.
“I’m trying to write an ode to our day lilies” I said as I pointed to container on the deck filled with day lilies and creeping jenny. I sat back and adjusted the laptop before I read out loud what I’d just written.
When I was done I looked over at him. “What do you think?”
He nodded his head. “So that’s an ode?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I think so. It’s the first one I’ve ever written.” I looked back at the screen. “I guess it’s kind of like a poem.”
“What made you want to write that?” He asked as he reached over and picked up his glass of water.
I shrugged my shoulders again. “I just felt like they deserved one. Every year when I see that first bloom I know school is coming to an end.”
“And summer is right around the corner!” Alex laughed as he took a sip from his glass.
“Exactly!” I began to laugh, too. I looked over at the one blooming day lily with several others ready to burst open at any moment. “My favorite time of the year is almost here!”
Alex put his glass back on the table. “So, what are you planning on doing this summer?”
I put the laptop on the table and leaned back in my rocking chair. “I’m not sure yet.” I watched as a hummingbird swooped over to the feeder and began taking a quick drink. “Maybe I’ll start by sitting out here for my morning tea and just relaxing.”
Alex looked over at me. “Really?”
“No.” I sighed again. “I’ve already got all my doctor’s appointments scheduled, a list of everything I want to get done in the house, and sewing projects I’ve been putting off until I had more time.”
“Well, it sounds like you’ve got it all figured out.” Alex sounded doubtful.
“I should probably put some fun things to do on my list, too.”
“Maybe you can write another ode about something else.” Alex suggested.
“Nope.” I said as I picked up the laptop and looked back at the screen. “I think this is going to be my one and only ode I’ll be writing.”
“Why?”
I shrugged my shoulders again as I closed the screen on my laptop. “I’m just not a big fan of the ode.”
Slice of Life 