Poem

Where Boyhood Meets Manhood
by Sarah Pemberton

This is where the river meets the sunset.
The stream bends and twists,
falling over rapids and rocks,
tumbling over stones and debris.
This is where tall yellow weeds stretch toward a mango sky,
blanched by a hot summer sun.
This is where a boy stomps in the shallow end,
where brownish still waters soak his shorts
and weigh down his tee shirt,
where tawny skin is kissed by freckles,
and autumn eyes are rimmed with July,
and brushed with August.
This is where his father stands.
Hands on hips, lips at half mast.
Where boyhood meets manhood,
and everything between is whipped in meringue
and forgotten like a peeling sunburn.