All day on sunny days
A shade less in the rain

Across the road, trees
Gave their apples kindly
If she curtsied
And asked in humble tones

Mostly she watched the travelers
How they reveled and danced

Their songs lifted her heart
Lifted her lips at the corner
Lifted her eyes and chin
So she stayed young

In her cottage, which was enough
More than enough–until

At first, a neighbor’s child
The girl skipped across for an apple
The next day her shoes sparkled
And the following, she departed

They whispered about it
Until the girl’s mother left, too

Everyone felted their soles
Or swore off apples
She shuttered her window
Covered her ears at night

Cried when friend after friend
Waltzed away in search

In search of what? Nothing
She wanted or needed, more than
The cottage she owned
Having scrimped and saved