The Hammock

Today we got out
the hammock
believing that winter
is finally gone
and that spring
will soon become summer

We lifted it
from where it lay
wrapped up
upon the basement floor
we brought it back
into the light 

We hung it
on the hammock stand
for there are no trees 
that would suffice
we put it back
where it had hung before
and suddenly
the yard didn't feel 
so empty anymore

My siblings lept upon it
as soon as it was hung
rocking
back and forth
until it began to swing

They tipped and rolled
until they fell
and flipped it upside down
and then they lay there 
giggling
rolling and kicking
upon the ground

I sat down on the hammock
and immediately remembered
how bad
a condition
the poor
old hammock was in

We got it from
our grandparents
who had owned it
long before
my mother sat upon it
when she was just a girl

So you can probably imagine
the shape
this hammock is in
an old rope hammock
stretched and worn
the holes all
uneven

I sat down
upon the hammock
and I slipped
through a
particularly large hole
and I hit my butt
rather hard
upon the ground
a rookie mistake
on my part

It may be old 
and holey
but we still play upon it
whether I
am relaxing
or my siblings
are rolling
or my mom 
is resting her legs
it serves its purpose
doing all it is meant to do
and we
are pleased