Skipping to the pool Jumping over the rail And into the icy water We were girls And yet women Free. But no more. What has changed us? Is it he? Is it I? What has changed you? Where is that spiked-haired girl Who laughed so easily? Who pushed down my legs until my abs burned who leaped first into the icy pool who trusted me with secrets in the whispering dark I felt strong and wise and important Confidant and friend. I was who you needed Just as much--I needed you. Yet no more? Like a shutter drawn across a beam of light makes the sleeping dreamer doubt the truth of day I am befuddled I miss our easy-as-breathing friendship. Yet I fear--should the shutter draw back the light will not feel the same. Can the summer compete with the color-splashed daffodils of spring? Written Sunday, September 20, 2015