Alive

I took a walk today,

to celebrate being Alive.

I didn’t even wear sunscreen

because I didn’t want

anything

to come between my skin

and the brilliant radiation

from our sun, the nearest star

illuminating our sky

— on this day —

to a shimmering azure.

The Kansas wind tickled my face

as Chaka Kahn and Janelle Monàe

tickled my ears

and powered the pistons

in my stiff legs.

I cut through a grove of

redbuds and crabapples

in full white-and-pink bloom,

breathing in their perfume

and expelling the stale,

indoor air trapped inside me.

I chugged past a

pot-bellied tot wearing

shorts with boots

dancing

in the shade of a young maple.

I saw a white-haired woman

break into a full sprint,

exerting herself,

her silver locks a

brilliant

flag in the wind

before resuming her walk

and I thought —

You go old lady!

Push that oxygen through

your bones

while you still can!