8.
solstice


We pried back the floorboards with a crowbar,
Dan removed rusted nails with his dad's hammer.
We would have dropped worms on his big sister,
Summer.  We would have let the worms crawl
through the ceiling fixture or the hole we poked
with a Phillips-head the week before. When the
gap in floorboards grew big, I stuck my face
to the screwdriver hole to be sure Summer was
in the room.  What I saw: the new growth
of bulbs planted in spring.  Orchids.  The thick
undergrowth of long daylight.  I never told Dan
why I put the floorboards back in place;
      when I bent backwards to reach
      for the hammer, I think it was clear.


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