he collected a jar of fireflies from a long row of lilac bushes that separated their backyard from their neighbours old bushes  a thicket   no fence needed

opposite side the other neighbours

                                     their yards were separated by thin metal fencing hungwired to studded T-posts

no one had dogs

easypeasy

he collected fireflies for only that evening

                                           placed them on the picnic table fired up a joint sipped an Old Style beer from a small vintage green metal Coleman and dimlylighted by a battery Coleman lantern wrapped in red cellophane pen and paper was prepared and determined to see if they knew Morse codemight communicate with him or if in one fellswoop they might flash obliterateblast blot his vision

not that night

they were incoherent

his Maw called outhad cranked open the casement window in the kitchen overlooking the yard

                                                                                                    Your father and I are going to bed, Joe.

Ill be right there

                 he wanted to kiss them goodnight

earlier he bathed put his kid brothers and sisters to bed while it was still light

Good night Maw  I love you  Sleep well

Not too late. his mother said

                               Bugs confiding any secrets?

Not yet  No not yet

                     When they do Ill fillya in

You’re a funny kid. We’ll miss you this Fall when you’re off to school.

Lets not hurry the summer

                            Theres much to savor between now and then

Yes. Much.

his Dad grabbed him by the shouldershugged him kissed him on the mouth

                                                                               You’ve certainly grown into quite a man.

When did that happen?

from his hips he swung both his arms up wide stopped shoulder level

                                                                           Chaucer Time waits on no man

his father laughed Who the hell’s Chaucer?

Ill share with you tomorrow after my routes over breakfast coffee the newspaper

                                                                                     I love you  Good night father

Good night, son.

his father always called him son

his mother always called him Joe

he wandered back outside opened another beer

                                                   fireflies fired less frequent  shone like dull coals

he took the quart Mason jar

opened it by the lilacs

gently shookagitated it

it emptied in tenfifteen minutes

as it did he wondered how many hed recapture the next night

screwed the lid back on walked over to the table sat again he opened another beer in the dull red light from the Coleman he wrote a letter to his girlfriend a year older she stayed on at school for the Summer was an aspiring artist

she drew little pictures on his letters of her naked posed differently various scenarios her in the sea and surf among marvelous creatures were his favourite

he closed her letter

                     Youre every tick of the clock shared by my heart and brain

I love you very much

AMish,  Tuesday,  10  8. 02

2014,  Satyrday,  15  6. 24