When a Summer Day Went on Forever

When a summer day went on forever,
Its shimmering song was
The high buzz of cicadas,
The wavering heat made audible.

Like ancient resin, now golden amber,
Preserved foever in my memory:

Choirs of treefrogs
Singing Lauds in the beamy branches,
And Evensong by crickets
In the long grass at twilight.

All, all, suddenly resurrected
By the scent of rain on hot pavements,
Calling me back to the
Dim, leafy cathedral copse,
Its pillars hung with wild grape,
Its nave the swelling spring that runs not dry.

Betsy McKenzie, June 7, 2007