Your Old Bathwater

What brought me to the green lopsided fence
Shuffling in clear plastic sandals
The sand particles with tiny rocks
Wedged nicely in the creases of my toes
Was more than anticipation
The pensive pacing
The prying through the narrow slats
It was all I could do to escape your decisive cry
The wooden spoon left swirling in thick onion soups
And all the lentils in the world
A fine aroma of basil pinched from the soil
And the mint leaf dissolving on my fiery tongue
Lying on the steaming asphalt in the driveway
Flat and open
I recall the grit the cancelled sun the venom of the wasp
The tepid opaque water
As I knelt without sign or cause
In the sanction of your love