Suburban Teenaged Summers

The sweet bird songs heard at the break of dawn Mixed with the sound of sprinklers on the lawn Neighbors readied boats for bobs in the bay Morning papers landed in each driveway Boxy air units were wedged into sills A mailman in shorts delivered the bills I rode my bike downhill to feel the breeze Getting vitamin D was done with ease Voluptuous housewives gloved in the garden Black barbecue grills covered in carbon Thirsty drooping plants on blazing back decks Lobster red shoulder blades and sunburnt necks Lunch was a sandwich and chips in the shade Washed down with a glass of pink lemonade Money was made from the grass I would mow Listened to baseball on my old radio On towels in backyards lounged sun seekers Chlorophyll stained the tips of my sneakers The mower’s blade spun like a propeller Musty scents wafted up from our cellar Plump purple mulberries there for the pluck The beckoning sounds of the ice cream truck Mom cooked supper and the heat was obscene Hamburgers, tater tots, and cowboy beans I ate with gusto like a death row man Napkins aloft from the rotating fan Symphony by crickets under the stars Blinking fireflies and candles in jars