Bye Bye, July

July, your brown grass crunches
beneath my bare feet
monarchs enjoy your butterfly bush
bats make evening visits

July, your asparagus makes a great lunch
lemon water is my beverage of choice
a meal of fresh fruit can be my supper
‘cause it’s too hot to cook very much

July, gone are your lilies and allium
cottonwood no longer snows
you’re plum-colored echinacea’s prime month
hibiscus is starting to bloom

July, a lot of your days must be AC cooled
but some days screen windows will do
at night we play cards under your stars
fireflies do their fairy light dance

July, you’re the month to kick back on the glider
sip margaritas beneath a shade tree
while listening to rhythms of Stevie Wonder
like Jammin’ on Hotter than July*

July, mid-summer, mid-year, mid dry spell,
mid-season of shorts and tank tops
bye bye, July, I bid you farewell
see you again in a year, my friend

*Listen to Master Blaster (Jammin’) by Stevie Wonder on his 1980 album Hotter than July for a hot summer tune.

Photo taken of echinacea growing in the front garden of my home in Troy, MI.