Lessons
when I was a very little girl
my sister and I
used to play
among the lake rocks
in front of our cottage.
big waves and slimy algae
and dragonflies
among the reeds
that’s years ago nowwe no longer wear
waterwings
or float on pieces of foam
we used to pick
the long weeds
from the water
without them
one could swim easier
and besides —
they were scummy
and tickled
our arms.
the dragonflies would jump
from
plant to plant
holding tight
to each other’s tails
making love,
i suppose.
we would pull them —
year after year
summer after summer
from the bay
in great piles
braid them together
and wear them as headdresses
or impermanent jewels
but that’s years ago now
the bay is clear.
too shallow for swimming.
and those dragonflies
those blue blue
dragonflies
never returned.