The river

Do you remember
Once when we were little
Peeing by the river?

We made water to be
With nature and leave our
Names in the sand.

Too much grape sugar drink
Made with river water,
We put it back.

The old iron bridge was out
But we climbed past
Living dangerously
Dangling precariously
Waiting for just the right shrieking moment to drop.

An old man kicked a
Long-dead carcass with a
Work-worn boot
Silent beneath a free hat,
Resigned to flannel,
Held tight with a moustache.

One day the leaves will come back to the trees.
Winter always leads to spring.

I remember pissing,
Giving life back to life,
One day by the river.