filling a hole

when i was young
summer days spent with grandparents
sleeping in

playing endlessly
oatmeal &
naps
swimming, books & summer friends 
every morning 
i would collect certain odds & ends
wire

sticks

apples & rocks
and i would build a squirrel trap
an amazing squirrel trap
a safe

inviting squirrel trap
i would build a squirrel trap
it would rest at the base of this huge old oak

in my grandparents backyard 
propped open 

waiting eagerly
expectantly
patiently
waiting
    to capture a squirrel
with intent sharp & focused
i would wait ....
birds churned & sang
bugs buzzed
i would watch
(gramma would bring me a peanut butter & jelly sandwich at noon
with the crusts cut off)
the sparse grass was moist & itchy as i lay on my stomach 
watching
and waiting
for hours
tightly pony-tailed hair
bobby socks & some pastel-bobbie-brooks-short-sets
waiting

eagerly 

expectantly 

patiently 
watching 
for
a squirrel to
want that shiny red apple
thrumming with some
ancient call
some primal need
to hold
something
wild

if only for a moment under a summer sun