August:

the sun was blinding like a great yellow spotlight

it must have been around 100 degrees.

My friends and I

jumped

into the lake

with all our clothes on.



When we surfaced into the humid air

covered with slimy greenish-brown seaweed

I felt something slither

up my back.



As I looked down

at my shoulder

two eyes black as night

were staring straight at me,

hot coals burning on a barbecue.



My friends and I,

screaming,

raced out of the water

onto the wooden dock

that creaked and cracked as if it were going to

collapse under our feet;

the snake had fallen off my arm.

it inched

back to its home



August:

was a snake

sly, and misleading

that silently slid away and left me

alone,

exhausted,

like a wilted red rose

that lies flat against the damp green grass.