A simpler life

Its all lollipops and my Sunday school shoes. Stolen kisses from the neighbor girl out back behind the big oak tree.

Her hair the color of sand pulled behind her ears, our backs against the wide trunk.

She wants to be a writer and I exclaim in excitement 'i want to be a hero' gesturing with my hands making fists like a fighter, punching the air before setting them back on the soft, cool ground where my left hand mistakenly lands on hers. I'm filled with embarrassment and freeze.

She just smiles and rests her head on my shoulder, moving her hand so that my fingers line up with the spaces between hers and fall into place and curl under into her palm.

The lazy august sun rests above the hills while the constant hum of an old man mowing his lawn down the street fades through the air.

I rest my head against the tree and close my eyes

If only life could have stayed so innocent, so simple.