Memory of Cleaning the Side Yard
Memory of Cleaning the Side Yard
I. Side Yard
Ornamental rock
remove exposed covered earth
hidden by darkness.
Old paint containers
containing different colors
of dried and cracked paint.
Many rusted pans
stolen from kitchen cabinets
lying in the rain.
Rusty cast iron
carries pebble collection
all recently washed.
Borrowed Barbeque
never returned to owner
bolts also rusty.
Sits never used grill
gather people over food
celebrate the day.
Empty containers
once filled with my children’s play
now humbly still.
Buckets full of mud
used to make mud balls and pies
dry with the late sun.
II. So Many Things
Some recycled art
plastic bottles and tin cans
piled in a corner.
Place of hidden play
treasures that no longer shine
only in child’s mind.
Tattered wooden block
once held the blade of sharp knives
in a cracked red tub.
A bead collection
to form a line in the dirt
many necklaces.
An old dog photo
scotch taped onto planks of wood
a friend to someone.
A jungle of weeds
a random forest cover
to hide Father’s tools.
Once sturdy tackle
box from many a great trip
times as fishermen.
III. Thrown Away in Our Side Yard
My son builds a boat
out of scrap lumber he’s found
with nails and hammer.
Garden gloves with burs
tears started by roses thorns
or struggles with earth.
Metal artifacts
a graveyard of fallen planes
from some past World War.
Piles of dried brown leaves
slowly mulch in the corners
to bring a new lawn.
Lumbered two by four
practicing in carpentery
screws and nails throughout.
IV. Time to Clean
A weed or two here
since the day of the pulling
have grown back to fight.
Litter and debris
small plastic wrappers and tape
sit alone or pairs.
Baseball bats and gloves
some Soccer and Basketballs
with Nerf guns and toys.
A hoe and a rake
lean against a wooden fence
silent and patient.
Used dented fire pit
a place to burn extra wood
near cracked plastic chairs.
Gave this yard a clean
before the valley feels snow
this time to prepare.
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You certainly have mastered the Haiku, Jamie. I love reading your Haiku stories. Well done, my friend.
Well done Jaime – I have never been able to write Haiku poetry, it is a pleasure to read yours – As Phyllis mentioned you have mastered it.