A Blessing for the Life You're Bracing For

Bless you who still have popsicles to drip,
tomatoes to slice, books to leave facedown for just a minute longer,
and evenings that don’t yet know they are numbered.

May you resist the annual migration
toward freshly sharpened pencils, color-coded calendars,
and the familiar lie that next month deserves more of your attention
than the one still sitting in front of you.

Bless you who linger over one more meal outside,
one more chorus of cicadas, one more porch sit,
trusting that ordinary rituals are already a life well lived.

May you savor what remains
before you begin rehearsing what comes next,
because August has always been generous
with those willing to stay exactly where they are
for just a little while longer.