she caught my attention

as i drove past,

ginger curls flowing

incandescent in sun

 

at the top of a middling

sized tree, she not only perched

but bounced and shook

 

arms back and forth,

feet rebounding with all

that a small frame

could muster,

 

while three young boys

of similar stature

waited to scoop up

fruit that fell below

 

and i wondered who nominated

her to climb, but then reframed

that a girl such as her would

not wait

 

no, she was the mastermind

as well as the executor, and

the lads were simply along

for the ride on adventures

of her design

 

and that the luminescence

in her halo of hair

might not actually be from sun,

but from light that radiated

fierce within

 

and although a week or more

has passed, i still see her

fearless and free

on top of that tree

 

and smile

 

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Vesela Vaclavik on Unsplash