armistice

I came out onto my porch
to listen to the men at work down the road

The humming of their oversized machinery
digging deep into the soft Earth

There's a metaphor in there
but I am too uncomfortable for sexual similitude
And we are only just beginning to love again

I watch him through the door
as he pours the coffee
He comes out and hands me a warmed mug
We sit like this
Together
On our porch

Hum, hum, hum

I had always longed for a porch of my own
As a young girl
spending summers at my grandparent’s cottage
in that old river town
Where we'd pass the time on the wooden planks
aligned into a simple platform
to hold creaky chairs with good people in them

A spot to sit as we watched the sun rise and the birds begin their chores

He looks at me over his steaming cup
We are on our poorly painted veranda
In our own inflexible chairs
Acknowledging together that we are in the delicious moment
of cease-fire

of reunion
of protecting a vow

We sit here—satisfied
Hum, hum, hum
before we rise and begin our chores