sitting down with a bowl full of unshelled peas
still warm from the sun
the white enamel pan cool
on my lap
filled to the brim with a whole mess of them
my fingers move with the same motions
memorized by the hands of my people
zipping them open
and dropping the peas down into the pan
the plink plink plink plays the background tune
to the stories shared or watched
as we sit under the fan
thankful for a reason to sit
out of the hot summer sun for a while
we gather and
many hands make light work,
as my Mama used to say
as the pile of purple goes down
with the sun
the peas collect and promise
a good meal soon
the feel of summer
pea hulls in the hands
the smell of summer
their earthiness full of the gift of the land
and the one who grew them
and picked them
sharing his bounty
I smile, remembering precious moments
shelling peas with the ones I love
who taught me how
and now I take the little fingers entrusted to me
and I show them how to unzip
and shell
and look
just in case there’s a bad one in the bunch
they laugh and giggle
and I hope it will always be so
folks shelling peas
and giving thanks for what they have
and laughter
on porches
and summer sunsets
kissed by an evening breeze
and a pot of fresh-picked peas on the stove
I Might Need A Nap 