Because I Like the Way the Sun Smells
The toe-headed boy with the bright blue eyes
Wanders over to where I stand at the line
Head to the side, he looks into my own blue eyes, the only part of me not hidden by the floral queen sheet I’m in the midst of taking down
He asks: do you have a dryer?
Yes, I say
Is it broken?
Nope.
Why are your clothes on the line?
Quickly all the reasons I dry my clothes outside run through my head:
– I love how the colors and patterns ripple in a breeze to form something new
– I love the satisfying snap of pulling linens from the line
– I like feeling the crunch of sun dried towels softening against my damp skin after a shower
– I like the way the sun smells on my clothes when I pull them out of the closet
– I’m trying to brighten our future
– I use less electricity
But what I say is the very last thing that comes to mind
– because I don’t have to spend money on electricity
I immediately wish I could take those words back, pin them down inside
I said this as if this was the most important reason
When truly it is the least of them.
Why couldn’t I bring myself to tell this boy about the magic that happens on the line?
How much magic is reduced to talk of cents?
A Picture and a Poem 