Back to reality.
Was it only yesterday that
our cruise ship sailed into Boston Harbor?
How quickly the sights and sounds
of wind and water and other ports of call
become the stuff of memory.

Home to a beautiful day.
Almost too warm for late October.
Impatiens still bloom
aside more seasonal mums.
Feel compelled to stack chairs
and tuck cushions away while the sun shines.
Like squirrels gathering nuts
against the scarcity of winter,
our instinct nudges us into action,
knowing that balmy breezes
are as fleeting as a week long cruise.