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I stepped on it, Or nearly In the parking lot But the flash of yellow caught my eye Before I put my foot Down Yellow with black, welded together Iridescent blue, flame colors Stark Against the mottled black Of the tarnished pavement Almost falling apart when I reached Down To pick it up Careful careful Not to allow it to crumble to dust A memory Or a dream Curled on its side, merely sleeping? No Gone Fleeting beauty Ephemeral Transient Evanescent I could not make it live again To fly again To fill some child's heart with joy As she trampled Down Her mother's flower bed to catch it Helpless staring Down At it with tears (and where had they come from?) Like a mother bereft |