positive pointing #43: warming

so now it's summertime. (yes it is, i don't care about you, june 21st)
and it's funny because i think one thing that makes summer so much
better is not actually anything cold.
like popsicles, ice cubes or a swimming pool

it's fire.
the big burning mass of hotness that keeps all things toasty
even though they don't necessarily need to be.
the televison of cavemen and tired eyes in the evening.
the mush-i-fier of marshmellows.
the creator of smores and burnt hotdogs. (burnt is best. silence!)
the gravitational pull on small gatherings of people.
the lingering scent in your zip-up the next day
and the owner of all the black ash under your nails
the provider of the light that makes your friend's faces
beautiful and slow
(the present-tense polaroid)

and i'm remembering, suddenly, all of this.
it was the wet grass, the warm hot dogs in cooler buns, dirt where you can breathe it in,
the ungraceful slump in the
always-uncomfortable-but-whatever-keeps-my-butt-dry
camping chair
and suddenly, i remember

and

i'm thankful for rings of people
and late evenings of well-charred food
and warming earth.
(even those bugs, i like you too.)