Working Outside in the Evening

Photo by Bev Potter

It’s nice,
working outside in the evening.
The only clock the steadily
dimming light.
The air cools as only air can,
first a little,
and then all at once.
And maybe this,
this patch of lawn and these blooms,
these are the only things
you control.
You talk to the flowers
because of course,
of course you do.
Talk to them like the children
you never had.
Tell them how beautiful they are,
how brave and strong.
How you’ll protect them
from beetles and the smooth,
ravenous slugs
that are more a rough draft
than a living thing.
This, you can tidy.
These borders you can keep.
This is the world
as you want it.
It’s nice,
working outside in the evening.