Joey Is Nine and Having a Party

by Amy Soricelli

Fourteen pirates with patchy eyes-  swords
bouncing right and left;
as they tumble down the stairs - arms and legs
tangled, like spider webs.

Sneaker toes with blocks of mud
leaving peppery trails to the cake -
knobby knees and light-bulb eyes
M & M's on pirate plates.

Ice cream mounds in drippy bowls -
gathered like soldiers in a line -
parents nearby in pirate hats
keeping watch with forest eyes.

He blows his wishes into the yard
dangling, like tired balloons;
floating over ships made of wood
and the August blow-up pool.

I am the strongest kid on earth
Joey shouts into the skies-
his words float like confetti into nearby yards
where there is no party and no one turning nine.