the other side of the gate

there was air that smelled of rhododendron

and dirt

once upon a time

the other side of the gate

was just different

where water flowed

singing a melody as it moved

and knowing it was pretty

so sweet to drink

filling up those empty milk jugs

one cousin ran to catch his mother

wasn't her

looked like her from behind

we giggled and ran, he's

now gone, and his brother immured

another cousin kissed me

when noone was looking

he changes lives now

spirit pouring from his face

like his grandfather

what lessons

were mine to take with me

from those rooms, that high air

and all the stories & laughter

shaping who I am today

but that air

decades later, each time I return

smells different

better

on the other side of the gate