winter nights
days of looking
at the flames
and into the ashes
in the house with wood-panelled walls

and summer nights
nights of warming
after long summer days

black dog in the bush pool
neglected concrete
pebbled aggregate

that lingering emptiness
where things don’t quite meet

my friend become stranger
strange friends that disappeared
or strange that they disappeared

or not
given the circumstances

drifting like tumbleweed
called panicum effusum
aptly
because it was like panic
running away
not looking back

connections that failed

strange emptiness
an aggregate of circumstances

summer winter
always the wrong one
at the time

hot nights at the fire
hot days at the pool
stretched long on the concrete

disappeared too quickly
come back too soon

not looking back
till it was too late