no kids

the kids are in the parking
lot
the cul de sac
they are wild.
flies
buzzing. screaming
a few crying.
balls bounce,
jacks are thrown,
ropes are jumped. i'm
dreaming though.
i'm imagining things
on this blue sky
day.
it's 1968 in my mind.
there's no one out there.
no kids.
no four square, no
tag,
no kick ball. I haven't
seen a kid
in ages.
they aren't shoveling
snow,
or cutting grass, or
washing cars.
I haven't seen a kid
looking for empty bottles
to turn in for
two cents
in ages. and that makes
me sad.