I Could Do Worse

I could do worse—you know—than to push

kids on swings

 

in the evening as the sun eases behind

the trees

 

significantly worse

dramatically worse

terribly worse

horribly worse

 

catastrophically worse

 

the smallest hands

finger the chains—trust—drowsy, 

more a rocking than a swinging,

mostly hushed,

nearly, a trance

 

cataclysmically worse

 

the older kids clamor for new heights—toes skyward,

legs pumping—I, grounded, merely push,

they climb, their squeals pitch higher

 

flyovers

two geese

a passenger jet

 

apocalyptically worse

 

higher still, a veil of thinning clouds

a waning crescent moon

Mars ascending

tragically, worse

Lyman 2023