The Squeeze

by Stephen Jarrell Williams

The squeeze of it
Earth and sky
Flesh and spirit

Purple welts on the bottom of my bare feet
Sun boils on the top of my scarlet scalp
Stints in my heart

Soft rubber flip-flops for my stiff toes
My hippie hair still long but thin
Sad rock-and-roll playing in my head

You don’t care
I don’t blame you
We’re all alone even holding one another

But just take a moment
Bite the air and stand still
Eyes closed

Feel it
Not as pain
But a transition

Grapes into wine

The sea majestically blending
All the red of our unsolved worries
Into a beautiful blue shimmering
Beside the land turning greener and lush
Without our foolish promises of help

The squeeze of it

The squeeze of something much more.