Between

Lee Friedlander, from America by Car

Between

Do you remember when

we would swing as high

as high as gangly legs

could propel?

Then we’d jump jump jump

landing in soft grass

and the comfort

of a summer day.

I lost my gumball machine ring

in that grass.

We decided that the devil

had reached up his hand

and

snatched

it.

That was when I started

the march toward

that far horizon.

I’m not there yet

here between the

lost ring

and the end of things,

glad and grateful

that the answer to the question

(are we there yet?)

is no,

not yet.

This is a Magpie Tale. And it’s letter B for my ABCs of Gratitude series.