After

I can’t think about before or now, but after, 

after all the moaning and groaning, 

after all the cleaning, weeding, and mowing, 

after we cook, grill, and bake, 

after we cut, tape, and decorate, 

after the hair, makeup, and sunscreen – 

that’s when the fun will finally begin. 

Car after car pulls into the driveway, 

out come aunts, uncles, even my little cousin Jay Jay. 

Flashy, light-up necklaces, and hats with big flags, 

small, little taffies in small zippy bags. 

So many variations of red, white, and blue, 

even Aunt Marry in her red, polka dot dress – 

you’d swear she was a toadstool. 

After the hugging, the chatting, and gifts, 

after the snacking, the munching, and sips, 

I see the biggest tray get set on the table, 

the colors screaming green and red – 

I think it’s a watermelon! 

But it’s Becky’s famous Cinnamon Bubble Bread. 

After slipping and sliding, 

and the occasional bleeding and crying, 

my mother says it’s finally time 

to head on down to the shoreline, 

where we whisper and mingle, in the pitch black, 

where the little ones are scared of what’s about to attack. 

After we settle and wait, 

after we look up with strength, 

we see the smallest streak of color shoot to the sky, 

and wait so effortlessly for the loudest bang of our lives. 

After closing and clenching, 

making myself small,

I look out into the sky to the most beautiful thing in the world:

a swirl of lights, and bright colors at that,

and the oohing and ahhing as everyone sat…

After waiting,

after watching,

after smiling so big,

I erupt from a nap, not realizing what I did.

After snoring, drooling, and kicking my feet,

I awake, relaxed; it was all a dream.

Trying to remember, feeling the lurk,

I can only ask myself,

What’s a firework?