Kindling
It’s like the day after a party The room no longer warm with bodies Cleaned and tidied All the laughter and light forgotten It is getting cooler now The sun is setting now And how brilliant? The last kisses of heat The way the wind takes our faces in her immaculate hands Brilliant green petals turn dark so quickly Breathing the last airs of this sticky summer Carry the fleeces up from the basement Strip the sweat-stained cotton from our dark skin Run into the frigid lake, laughing for no reason at all saying I don't want to talk about it And on Sunday mornings decorate the backyard with wet linens And keep them out long after they’ve dried, just because The summer will come again, this much we can count on But this youth, this vibrancy Our dense laughter and tight bodies Let’s say goodbye to all this Burn the bathing suits and sandals Catch the ashes of youth on your tongue The fire burns deep and full There is no need for kindling
Ashmi Ranjan attends Athens High School; Ranjan won second place in the Charles Crupi Memorial Poetry Contest for Michigan High School students. For more information on the contest, please visit the Albion College English Department website.
The Albion Review 