Alder Bushes

I know where you take your lovers.
In the alder bushes by the highway.
The older boys took me there
on a sunny Sunday.
Maybe they were hoping to see you
unaware.
I don't know and I don't care.

 

I see you walking down the lane.
I feel you turn and look at me.
My cheeks burn
I turn
Can you read my face so plain?
Is your secret safe with me?

 

You must be more careful.
The path is beaten down to the brown.
The grass is thin and yellow where you lie.
Crumpled tissues hang limply from the low branches.
The soft and muted hum of rubber
carries in from the road when a car goes by.

 

Where are you going when I see you in the lane?
Will you be meeting your lover there again?
I look for a glimpse of wisdom in your face
I will not betray your hidden trysting place.
I am your sworn and secret accomplice.

 

The sun warms your fair skin
Green blades of grass tangle in your strawberry blond curls
and clover and dandelions cushion your elbows.
Where will you go
when the winds of winter blow
and the thin alders stand naked in the chill snow?

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