They were ripe
And they were sweet.
They’d tickle my chin with their little hairs,
Pulling a smile to my cracked lips.
The heat always did that.
Probably didn’t help that I never used lip balm.
The moment my teeth sunk into the soft body
juice would dribble,
Dribble,
D
R
I
B
B
L
E
Down my chin
Until it formed,
A perfect,
Circular
Bead where the light caught on it in such a way
That it glimmered.
That little trail of juice was always cold, sticky, and
Refreshing.
I remember how the weather would always be warm.
It was a pleasant sort of warm, too.
Never too hot
Or humid.
It always made the peaches taste sweeter.
Mother said she didn’t understand how it was possible,
But I could see it in her eyes,
The way they glimmered just as bright as the juice on her chin.
She understood.
She’d sit with me on the front porch
And we’d eat together in silence.
Just us,
The fruit,
The dribbling juice on our
Chins.
I wish I could go back to those days.
Peaceful,
Content,
Easy.
Sometimes I’d read the newspaper,
And I’d occasionally mention something to her,
Something that was happening in town,
In the world.
On those days, the scent of paper intermingled with the peaches
And the wind.
The breeze that ruffled my long, light strands always smelled of something or other.
Mowed grass.
An incoming storm.
Fresh sprayed fields.
Those days were sometimes my favorite.
Mother always thought me weird, but I enjoyed the smell.
It was the smell of the country,
The smell of home
Just like the smell of the peaches and the newspaper were the smell of a perfect
Spring day.
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