Come to me

When you are done measuring

Yourself against the wind.

I will put down my rake

And welcome you as if

You had never left.

The chair faded

from afternoons of sun

And nights of dew

Will be waiting

In the northwest corner of the garden,

Where you can watch

The birds create architecture

From dried grass. I will leave

Ice in the freezer

Should you need it for your glass

And will have your favorite book

Waiting tableside, with a Florentine leather bookmark

Between pages 37 and 38. I remember

Where you left off. Your room

Looks out onto a swath of dusky hydrangeas

That were planted in your honor.

When you return, I’ll arrange as many as

I can carry in a vase on your bedside table.

The sun sets on this side of the house,

So I hope you’ll find time each day

To rest and wonder at the colors

exploding in front of us.