Bikini tops & flip flops
replaced bras & high heels.
It was the season for hair up
& windows down,
of ice cream melting,
crawfish steaming,
of long, lemonade days
& twilight walks;
of eating on back patios,
& drinking sweet tea on front porches.
It was gardenias releasing their perfume,
of honey suckling & berry picking,
& small, plump hands stained purple.
It was running barefoot in the backyard,
& laying below a spinning ceiling fan,
cutting through summer’s rhapsody.